


Give Yourself To Harmony

by Lafaiette



Series: New Beginnings [2]
Category: Mass Effect, Mass Effect: Andromeda
Genre: Angst, Brotherly Affection, F/M, Family Feels, Fluff, Humor, Hurt/Comfort, Love, Post-Game, Scott feels useless and fears his sister will leave him, Sexual Content, Spoilers for Mass Effect: Andromeda, the poor boy just misses his old home
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-04-12
Updated: 2017-06-02
Packaged: 2018-10-18 05:27:01
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 52,721
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10610199
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lafaiette/pseuds/Lafaiette
Summary: This huge alien who looks like a chubby, purple potato, this loud man who is part of the newest alien species just discovered in Heleus, this angara who expresses himself so freely and openly just like the rest of his species, is his sister’s boyfriend.Herfirstboyfriend, since her nerd ass never found someone intelligent enough to understand how special she is.At least, that means this weird guyisclever.In which Scott Ryder finally meets Jaal Ama Darav, his sister's boyfriend. It will take him a while to get used to this.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Warning: this fic contains spoilers of the game, the ending, and the post-game content!

It is strange to walk through the Hyperion – Meridian’s lush forests and fields just outside the windows – and see people scurrying around, busy and focused, hear their congratulations and thanks, and notice how everything and everyone looks better than he ever thought possible.

There are no kett, not anymore, and Scott’s leg and head don’t hurt as much as before. There are still traces of the invasion on the floor and walls, but he is just so happy to be here, alive and finally ready to take part to the Initiative, that his mind automatically ignores them.

He promised Harry to keep in contact and call him if new health problems arise; the doctor promised there shouldn’t be now, but being forced to interface with the Remnant tech without SAM left a pungent taste in Scott’s mouth, like the blood he actually tasted and the terrible realization that a mad, power-hungry alien wanted to use him and his implants to kill worlds and make Heleus kneel and accept his terrible gift.

It’s difficult to accept – he can still see Captain Dunn’s face as the Archon stole the Hyperion and flew it through Meridian’s gates, hear her voice through the comm as she got ready to give her life for the sake of all the sleeping colonists. He can still feel the rush of relief as the other Pathfinders saved her life and he heard that his sister was on her way to save him and everyone else.

The pride and affection he feels for her are more than enough to push away the lingering, painful sense of guilt and _uselessness_ he has felt for a long while, but it’s still there, a nagging shame that makes him blush and divert his eyes as soon as the people of the Hyperion smile at him, pay him their compliments – _compliments for what? I did nothing_ – and wish him a stellar career.

That, he can try to do. Now that he’s finally on his feet – for the second time -, he hopes the universe will finally let him have a chance at exploring this cluster of stars and find his purpose in it.

First Arcturus and his mass relays leading other people to their glory – or death, he has to admit -, now Andromeda, with its countless planets and people to see. All closed, off-limits to him.

 _Until now_ , at least, and amidst the shame, self-consciousness, and worry he also feels hope and excitement and he prays everything will make sense someday.

The orders aren’t clear yet, but for now he has been assigned to the Tempest, under his sister’s – the human Pathfinder – command. Then, the Nexus will decide, but he seriously hope his sis can put pressure on Tann – who apparently can be a pain in the ass sometimes – to let him stay on her ship as a member of her crew.

He wouldn’t mind serving under her. She is capable and they have always had a close bond; plus, she is _familiar_ and that’s something Scott desperately needs right now, even though his thirst for new discoveries and places is strong as ever.

The trauma and pain he went through just made him wish for something _not new_ and completely _alien_ , that’s all.

Speaking of, he had much time to learn and read more about the new sentient aliens, native of the Heleus cluster: the angara, which the Initiative describes being “larger-than-life”, “extremely open with their emotions”, “characterized by a deep sense of religion, spirituality, and love for family”.

Now, these are aliens he is more than willing to meet. He read that his sister was actually the first one to make a somewhat official contact with them – not counting the exiles on Kadara - and he wonders how it went at first, what her and their reactions were.

He read about the kett invasion, the terrible things those monsters did to the angara and their culture; he read about the Jaardan – that little he could find about them, anyway – and his mind tried to wrap itself around the concept of an organic species being created by another race.

The only comparison he has is the creation of the Geth, but things are different in this case and he knows he will have to ask many questions and learns so much more if he wants to live here without going crazy or being continuously confused.

Despite everything he read and his training, he stops on his tracks when he sees his first two angara standing near one of the doors of the Hyperion, talking with an elder human.

He saw many pictures of them, even watched some vids, but seeing them in the flesh is different and he can’t help but stare, curious like a child, studying their eyes, hands, posture, their voice and gestures.

The male, a tall, bulky angara with shiny green skin and marks on his face, notices his staring and stares back at him, narrowing his galaxy-like eyes a bit. Scott makes a panicked sound, which turns into pitiful babbles when the angaran woman and the human look at him too.

“Oh! Scott Ryder, right?” the human smiles, before turning to his angaran friends. “He is the human Pathfinder’s brother! He never stepped outside the Hyperion, so forgive his manners.”

“I saw pictures of Pathfinder Ryder.” the angaran man says, his voice hoarse and rumbling. He tilts his head sideways, a smile curling his lips. “You look like her.”

“I’m… I’m her twin.” he babbles and he is about to flee, mortified, when the angaran woman smiles too and approaches him.

“I never saw a human with hair on his face before!” she exclaims, touching the short stubble growing on his chin, a useless attempt to grow a full beard like his father. “All the humans I’ve encountered didn’t have it. It’s… fuzzy!”

His personal space is breached and the angara’s eyes are so big and seemingly filled with galaxies, Scott can only keep staring and letting her touch his face.

He grimaces and hisses when a light shock runs through his skin. Electromagnetism, right. He forgot about that.

“Oh, I’m sorry!” the woman gasps, clasping her hand over her mouth. “I didn’t mean to! I was too excited!”

Her companion has gotten near as well and Scott feels small and vulnerable; his arms look like they could send him to Eos with a slap only and his hands are larger than he thought, those three fused fingers unsettling him more than they should.

He grew up on a station full of aliens, he played with turian and salarian kids every day, yet a first contact is always a jarring, anxious experience, especially because he needs to be as polite as possible to avoid any diplomatic incident or misunderstanding.

How did his sister even do that? The angara didn’t even trust the Initiative back then!

“Is it true you were captured by the Archon?” the angaran man asks and there are amazement and horror in the aliens’ eyes. The woman doesn’t even hesitate when she adds: “Did he torture you? Did it hurt a lot?”

“I… Uh…” Taken aback by the clarity of their emotions and feelings, by their frankness and curiosity, Scott can only nod, glance at the human who is observing the scene with something akin to amusement, and then nod again, red like a tomato.

His eyes want to stare at every little detail of these aliens, but he doesn’t dare to and so he forces himself to stare at the wall behind them, hoping they will grow bored and let him leave.

“Are you well?” the angaran man asks, narrowing his eyes again. Scott realizes with an inward groan that he probably looks and sounds like a mess, a stupid child.

“Doesn’t your translator work correctly?” the angaran women kindly suggests, probably taking pity on him, and he manages to look at her – _what are those fleshy flaps around their necks?_ – and her friend – _their noses are flat and their teeth blunt, their clothes are so colorful_ – before replying softly: “They work. I… I should really go now.”

He excuses himself with more unintelligible words and a bow of his head, before practically scrambling away, pressing his duffel bag hard against his hip and trying to ignore their voices as they ask the other human what was wrong with him and if they did anything wrong.

His sister was able to win the angara’s trust, save their most important cultural figure, and establish a good relationship with them in little time, all after roughly landing on their hidden homeworld with a ship on fire and without making an ass out of herself.

He, on the other hand, stared rudely at two angara, wasn’t able to start a sensible conversation with them and make a good impression, and fled like a coward instead of apologizing and trying to make things better.

He is suddenly glad he stayed in a coma for the whole time.

 

His sister sent him a message before he left the Cryo Bay and Harry’s insistent, but kind medical cares. She said she is waiting for him on the Nexus, where urgent business forced her to land with the Tempest, so he will have to take a shuttle and join her on the station.

He actually likes that. He didn’t even get a chance to see and explore the main hub of the Initiative and to be honest he can’t wait to leave the Hyperion and Meridian behind.

Trying to drown his embarrassment from the earlier encounter with the idea of finally traveling through Heleus, he gets on the first available shuttle and prepares for the few hours of travel.

Fortunately, only Milky Way species are there and he is able to focus on his omnitool without problems; he isn’t sure he would be able to avoid staring at an angara if he saw another one.

For a moment, it feels like he is in a perfectly normal shuttle heading to the Citadel; he could almost trick his mind into thinking he’s still in the Milky Way Galaxy, but when he stares out of the windows and sees the unfamiliar stars and the Scourge, both his mind and heart get a little disappointed.

 _You still haven’t found your place here yet_ , he thinks. _Nothing wrong with a little bit of homesickness._

Only that it doesn’t feel like it’s a _little bit_ , more like a _mountain_ of homesickness spreading in his chest like the scorching effects of the Remnant technology forced through his implants.

He tries to distract himself with some light reading – a list of the armors the Initiative is developing together with the angara, detailed descriptions of the outposts Pathfinder Ryder established (even though he read those at least three or four times before), short summaries of what the Nexus and the angaran ambassador expect from the future.

After an hour or so, his omnitool reminds him to take the pills Harry ordered him to take for at least the next three weeks – “Don’t worry, my dear colleague on the Tempest will make sure to shove them down your throat if you’ll ever try to be an ass and purposefully forget them.”

That threat still rings in Scott’s ears and he wonders if the fretting asari who pulled him away from his sister was the colleague Harry mentioned. She didn’t look so… aggressive. More like really anxious and worried.

After swallowing the pills so that no asari can make him choke on them, he starts to write an email to his sister. The pilot said they will arrive to the Nexus soon and he needs to know where to go and when.

 

_Sis,_

_I’m almost at the Nexus. Can’t wait to see you, the crew, and the ship._

_I vaguely remember how the Nexus looks like from the brochures they gave us before the departure, but could you tell me where we are supposed to meet? I don’t wanna get lost on my first day._

_Scott_

Her answer arrives ten minutes later and it’s disappointingly short.

_Scott,_

_I’m sorry, but I won’t be able to meet with you. Tann and the others will keep me here for at least two more hours. I asked a squadmate to accompany you to the Tempest – you will love him, I’m sure! I told him to meet you near the Cultural Exchange Center, just outside the Docks._

His first reaction is a childish pout, which slowly turns into a thoughtful expression followed by a resigned, intrigued hum.

Even though his sister is too busy to finally introduce him to her ship and crew, he’ll be able to meet one of her friends. That’s already something.

It sounds like it’s a man. He read about the human Pathfinder’s crew, those days when his body refused to cooperate and he felt lonely and estranged like never before, looking for a way to belong to her new world and experiences, even if from afar.

After he woke up, his sister was able to visit him only twice due to her many duties, which the several, groundbreaking discoveries she made only increased.

The first time, she came after being informed of his awakening and they talked about Dad and Mom. They forgot to discuss her feats, her squad, her experiences, so he doesn’t know much about the people who protected and helped her all this time.

The second time, she came to show him Dad’s biggest secret, the reason he wanted to come to Andromeda in the first place: Mom’s pod, where she sleeps waiting for a miraculous cure.

(He often went to her and talked to her through the pod, when the loneliness and that sense of uselessness got too overwhelming.)

He only has some random information about his sister’s friends and he can’t remember them well from the little he could see after being saved from the Archon. He vaguely remembers an angara man, tall and looming, walking next his sister and a woman with red hair and a bright lipstick, but that’s it.

He’s sure a photo of the crew would be on the extranet… if the extranet existed here. But all the Initiative got so far are just communications and information shared with the established outposts, the angara, and New Tuchanka.

All this stuff is then processed and turned into easy-to-read texts, a sort of continuously-evolving encyclopedia that grows only when the Nexus remembers about it.

Things finally feel more normal at least, but a life without the extranet is not a life worth living, he somberly thinks.

All he can do, then, is trying to imagine who this squadmate will be. Knowing his sister, knowing how much she _knows_ him, he’s fairly sure she chose a reassuring, familiar presence.

He wouldn’t mind someone like Cora Harper or the asari doctor who took care of him. Even Liam Kosta – he heard he is aboard the Tempest - would be a nice way to break the ice.

Another hour passes and he is so busy imagining all the possible outcomes of this encounter, that he barely hears the pilot announce that they have arrived at the Nexus and are currently landing.

Clutching his duffel bag, Scott gets up from his seat and presses his face onto one of the windows, admiring the white, clean station, the multitude of different people walking around, the trees and plants visible even from here that the scientists were able to cultivate.

Then he sees it: the Tempest, docked just a few meters away on a separated landing platform, shiny and perfect, bringer of new adventures and beginnings.

His heart beats fast in his chest, tinting his cheeks, and a huge smile splits his face in half.

The shuttle softly lands and he follows the other travelers outside, making his way to a scanner which both analyzes them and starts a process of decontamination to ensure no virus, bacteria, and illness can enter the station.

He’s fairly sure his body is cleaner than a turian ship, after all the antibiotics and vitamins Harry forced him to take, but he can’t help but feel a little anxious as the light of the scanner moves up and down, examining every inch of his skin and organism.

When the machine finally beeps affirmatively and the door opens, Scott lets out a tiny, relieved sigh and walks down the long corridor, his steps light, his heart even lighter.

… His steps actually falter a little when he takes in the _enormity_ of the station and the number of people in it.

He sees angara too, some looking as dumbfounded as him, others more comfortable and relaxed.

There is a woman, with those who look like bodyguards, checking something on her blue omnitool – it’s not exactly an omnitool, but Scott doesn’t know how to call it – and talking enthusiastically about what she saw on the station; her bodyguards nod, offer their own opinions, and then they sense Scott’s eyes.

They turn to him at the same time, their helmets hiding their faces from him, but he can see how suddenly tense they are. Not much, but they definitely aren’t as relaxed as before.

Their armors are strange and more colorful than he expected, just like the clothes of the angara on the Hyperion. One of them has a small gun attached to his hip; it’s folded, but the shape is new and unfamiliar even from here.

The woman’s omnitool is particularly interesting too and he notices how the three of them have a weird, blue screen attached to their left arms, with bright, blue characters he cannot read.

“What do you want, human?” one of the guards asks, without malice or anger, just genuine interest. The woman smiles at him, nodding, and Scott realizes how her eyes are similar to those of the angara in the Hyperion, two galaxies swimming in a dark, soothing cosmos.

“I…” He can’t help but look down at their legs; they remind him of the turians’ or quarians’, but their toes couldn’t be more different. Again, he stares at the flaps framing the woman’s face and her smile grows, while his cheeks get redder and the second guard snorts.

“What, you never saw an angara before? I’d say our species had more than enough time to get used to each other.”

“Hush.” the woman chides him, waving a hand. “He probably just got out of cryo. Isn’t that right, young man?”

“Kind of.” he babbles, then hurries to add: “My lady.” Really, if someone is accompanied by two bodyguards, that can only mean they are important. What if he is standing in the presence of some angaran princess?

The three angara laugh and Scott suddenly misses the Cryo Bay a lot. He clutches the strap of his duffel bag tightly, mortified, but the angaran woman seems to notice how embarrassed he is and she comes to his help.

“I’m not the Moshae, young man.” she says with a kind smile, while her guards keep snickering and shaking their heads. “May I suggest you to visit the Cultural Center your Initiative opened here? It’s been quite useful to us angara too.”

“I read that humans like _iced cream_.” the first guard says, sounding interested. “And that you snap your fingers when you get a good idea.”

“Uh…” Scott refrains from telling him that he usually lets out a loud “yes” and smacks his hand on the desk when that happens.

He clears his throat and goes for the easiest answer, even cracking a smile: “It’s true, all humans love ice cream.” He thinks he should let them share more about their culture too, so he asks, trying not to sound too curious: “What do you like to eat?”

The angara seem confused and surprised by that question. They share a look, then the second guard replies, as if he was talking to a child: “It depends. Not everyone likes eating the same things as the others. Isn’t that the same for humans too?”

 _Oh_. They took him literally, as he read angara often do.

“Yes!” he hurries to say, hoping he isn’t being too confusing and making a mess. “It’s true, we don’t share all the same tastes, of course!”

“But,” the first guard says, very slowly, thinking about it _hard_ , “you just said that _all_ humans love ice cream. Is ice cream the only exception?”

“I… No! I mean… I didn’t mean _all_ humans, just…” A tiny whimper builds in his throat and he starts to panic. How did his sister manage to build an alliance with such literal people?

“You said _all_. Why use a word that doesn’t correspond to what you intend to say?”

Scott is on the verge of tears. He usually isn’t so emotional and years spent on the Arcturus Station built his character and personality, but right now, surrounded by these new aliens, after a heavy, painful trauma and more than a year of stress weighing down his shoulders, far from home and familiarity, he feels like a lost child.

He tries to explain himself, to help the angara understand him, but the words all come out minced or wrong and he freezes when the two guards laugh again.

“Stars, it’s always so easy.” one of them says, shaking his head.

“Doesn’t help that this one probably only ever _read_ about us.” the other agrees, laughing harder, until the angaran woman sighs and harshly tells them to stop.

“Enough! You are mortifying him!”

She turns to Scott with an apologizing look on her face; she clasps her hands and says softly, almost motherly: “Forgive them. They didn’t mean to offend you, they just like to joke and play with the more… naïve humans.”

“It’s alright.” Scott murmurs, choked up, and her smile turns softer as she adds: “We know the Initiative species consider us to be quite literal and we _are_ , just not as much as you believe.”

“Yeah, we can tell jokes and be ironic too.” one of the guards says, a bit tartly, but then he pauses and babbles: “Wait, are you crying?”

“No.” Scott sniffles, stepping back. “I… I should go. Thanks for your time.”

He _flees_ , ignoring the guards when they call out for him. He sees the door of the Cultural Center up ahead, far enough from the three angara to regain his composure and meet with his sister’s squadmate, pretending nothing ever happened.

He isn’t supposed to react like this to such a silly, innocent joke, but it seems his mind didn’t recover as well as his body.

He wonders, scared shitless, if his forced interface with the Remnant technology messed up his brain and the chemicals in his body more than the doctors and SAM thought.

Sniffling and rubbing his eyes with a sleeve, he enters the Cultural Center, avoiding the small crowd of Milky Way aliens near the immigration gates. It seems people are still looking for their relatives, friends, and lovers or for a place to stay.

He groans as soon as he enters the room: there are some salarians and turians, but most of the visitors are angara, curious and honest like the three he met outside. They are asking many questions to the director of the Center and those aliens who are more than happy to help them; some are listening to the audiologs and VI, others are downloading data and information on their weird omnitools.

Almost every one of them is wearing a colorful scarf or a short mantle around their neck and shoulders; just one, a tall, broader angara with purple skin, wears a longer version, almost like a cape or poncho.

Scott looks around, confused: nobody here looks like they are waiting for someone, for him. Everyone is busy, everyone is focused on their own business and interests, and they don’t look like travelers or people working on an exploration ship. He sees no humans.

The tall angara with the poncho is turned away from the door, talking softly with someone over his omnitool; Scott cannot hear all the words, but the tone is unmistakable and he moves away, not wanting to eavesdrop on a private, sentimental conversation.

“Don’t worry, _taoshay_ , it will be alright.” he hears the angara say and his voice is so full of love and adoration that he can’t help but feel embarrassed. He only ever heard such sweet tones being used in vids, not in real life. Dad, despite loving Mom _a ton_ , was never that affectionate with her… at least not in public.

 _‘Are all angara so free and open with their emotions and personal feelings?’_ he thinks, shaking his head with a frown as he walks up the stairs, hoping the squadmate is waiting for him on the upper level.

He is not and Scott feels a pang of frustration and tiredness. He huffs, ignoring the concerned look of the asari who takes care of things here, and he walks back to the lower entrance, the strap of his duffel bag chaffing painfully his neck.

Around him, thrilled and curious angara ask questions, such as “Don’t the salarians ever wish to sleep and dream more?”, “Do all turians have these reach and flexibility you mentioned?”, “Don’t you ever feel alone with such little families?”.

Before leaving the Cultural Center, a scrap of the previous sentimental conversation reaches his ears and he rolls his eyes, blushing harder and pitying the partner of that guy.

“The stars in the sky shine brighter when you laugh, my love. Please never stop doing that.”

 _Ugh_.

Biting back a disgusted noise in his throat, Scott goes out, his mood reaching the lowest levels imaginable when he sees the three angara from before still standing in the same place where he left them.

Don’t they ever move?

He sits on a bench near the door, hoping the crowd of colonists will shield him from the angara’s looks.

He misses his sister, who always knew how to comfort him and is now one of the most reliable people in the cluster. He misses the strength he saw in her eyes and he knows that she would know what to do if she was in his same situation.

Had their roles been reversed, she would have found a way to save _him_ , not the other way around. Things would have been exactly the same.

He almost sends her a message to ask her where her squadmate is, but in truth he just wants her to come instead. He knows he’s being petulant and childish and as soon as he realizes it, he closes the omnitool, not even daring to contact SAM.

He respects and likes the AI a lot, but his relationship with him isn’t as strong as the one his sister has with him and he doesn’t want to bother them, knowing they are probably still busy with Tann. Even if SAM can share his attention and is perfectly capable of multitasking, it would still feel like he’s bothering him.

With a sigh, Scott rests his chin on his hand, the duffel bag laying at his feet. The excitement and hope he had before are almost all gone now and he feels empty, dry like the desert of Elaaden that he saw in the pictures the Hyperion transmitted everywhere.

He distractedly hears the door of the Cultural Center opens, but doesn’t pay it much mind. He _does_ pay mind, however, to the sound that follows: a startled gasp, so loud he almost has a heart attack.

His head snaps to where the door is, but the sight is blocked by a towering angara, who is staring down at him with huge, wide eyes and a stunned expression on his purple face.

Scott sees the blue poncho fluttering behind his back and sighs. What does this mushy guy want from him?

“Scott Ryder.” the angara says. It’s not a question, but a statement and Scott sighs louder, embarrassment flushing his cheeks red again.

“You saw me in one of those vids going around, didn’t you?” he mumbles, looking down at his duffel bag. “Listen, I don’t want to talk about the Archon or Meridian. I remember little,” a huge lie, “and the stuff I remember is very unpleasant.” Totally true.

“Scott Ryder!” the angara laughs, a booming sound that echoes in the plaza and makes everyone look at them. The human is about to snap, when two large arms lift him from the ground and he is crushed against a strong, weird chest.

“ _Oof_.”

“Scott! I’m so happy to finally meet you like this!” the angara shouts in his ear. He even sways him a little in his arms before letting him touch the ground again and freeing him from the bone-crushing hug. There is a sheepish expression on his alien face as he says: “Oh, forgive me! Did I hurt you? I know you just recovered.”

“I’m… I’m fine.” He feels like dying. Everyone is looking at them, everyone is staring, everyone is _whispering_ , and Scott just wants to hide in the Tempest and stay there forever, safe among the stars.

He glares at the obnoxious angara, but the guy just beams at him; he looks happy like a puppy and his smile is blinding.

“Who… who are you anyway?” Scott finally asks, feeling how his hairs are all standing up due to the static caused by the alien’s electromagnetism.

“Of course, I forgot to introduce myself! I am Jaal Ama Darav, member of the Tempest crew and the angaran Resistance.”

Scott’s mouth hangs open as he stares at the angara with what he is sure is the goofiest face in the universe.

Now that he thinks about it, this guy _is_ the angara he caught a glimpse of while leaving Meridian.

So his sister sent _him_ to accompany him to the Tempest?

“Oh, my… my sister told me there was someone waiting for me, but I didn’t expect you to be… uh…”

“Fascinating? Handsome?” Jaal proudly puts his hands on his hips, swelling his chest a little, but Scott can see through his façade. He can recognize when someone is trying to fake confidence to _feel_ confident, because he and his sister do it all the time.

He clears his throat and admits before he can stop himself: “An alien. I was expecting a human, actually.”

He realizes how offensive and rude those words can sound only too late, but Jaal doesn’t seem bothered by them.

He _laughs_ again, the sound coming straight from his belly and leaving his mouth like a roar. He even tilts his head backwards a little and Scott’s urge to fly into space and die here is getting stronger by the minute.

“Now, why would you expect that?” Jaal says, patting his shoulder. “Alien or human, I’d still be a trusted member of your sister’s crew.”

Scott’s annoyance and mad mood deflate at that and he sighs, letting his sudden anger at the world slowly melt like an ice cube under the sun.

He smiles at Jaal – a polite, but sincerely warm smile – and extends his hand to shake his, hoping angara shake hands too.

“You are right. Forgive me for my rudeness, Jaal Ama Darav. It’s a pleasure to meet you.”

Jaal looks down at his hand and cold sweat starts running down Scott’s back.

So, angara do _not_ shake hands apparently.

He doesn’t know what to do: pulling back the hand would make him look like a fool, but it’s not like he’s making the best impression this way either. He is stuck frozen in that position, torn between pretending this isn’t happening and giving into his darkest mood, or wait for Jaal to do something.

He _prays_ the angara is sympathetic enough to take pity on him.

Fortunately, Jaal has a kind heart, although he laughs _way too much_. Because after laughing _again_ , he grabs Scott’s wrist and raises his arm. Then he taps against it with his own, fist closed.

“Your sister tried to do the same thing when we first met.” Jaal says and Scott is pretty sure he hears the same adoration in his voice he heard before, when he accidentally listened to his private conversation.

What is with this guy and emotions?

“So I assume this is the angaran equivalent of shaking hands?” he chuckles and Jaal nods with a huge grin, before glancing down at his duffel bag.

“Are those your belongings?” he asks and Scott makes an affirmative sound, picking up the bag.

“Yes, there should be everything I need.”

“Good. Let’s go to the Tempest, then. I will show you around and introduce you to the others while we wait for my Darling One.”

The excitement grows back into Scott’s tired, scared heart and his eyes shine with anticipation as he looks at the glorious ship visible from the plaza.

“Oh, great! I was looking forward to…”

Wait.

“… Darling One?” He looks up at Jaal as they walk towards the Docking Bay, a terrible doubt making its way through his mind and heart. “Who are you talking about, exactly?”

_Please, tell me it’s not my sister._

“Your sister, of course!”

_God, why do you hate me so much?_

“My sister.” Scott stops on his tracks for the third time that day; Jaal looks confused and stops as well, frowning worriedly at him.

“Are you alright, Scott?”

Scott observes him. He actually studies him now, more than he studied the other angara he met: his flat nose, his thin lips, his huge, _enormous_ eyes, those weird flaps near his face, his too-short arms, the three piercings above his left eye.

Then he evaluates his behavior and personality, the little he could see until now anyway: his boisterous ways and laughter, his exaggerated familiarity, his fake confidence, his honesty that he read is typical of all angara (and he found out is actually like that).

He feels like Dad.

“When you say ‘Darling One’,” he starts, talking slowly, “what do you mean?”

Jaal doesn’t miss a beat and replies immediately: “My _taoshay_.”

Scott’s left eye twitches. “And when you say ‘ _taoshay’_ , what do you mean?”

Jaal’s smile is so full of love, it’s a wonder a chorus of angels isn’t singing in the artificial sky of the station right now.

“My life. My stars and breath, the blood that keeps me alive, my very heart, my beloved.” He hums, scratching his chin. “She said one of the terms humans use is ‘girlfriend’, but she agreed that Darling One is way sweeter, so we use that one and many others.”

Scott makes a choked sound and looks away, a hand on his mouth to avoid laughing and crying at the same time. He’s pretty sure he’s having another heart attack.

“Scott?” Jaal sounds terribly worried. “Are you feeling alright?”

“Oh, yes, yes, of course.” he replies, his voice strained, barely recognizable. He tries to smile, but the sight must be horrifying, because Jaal takes a small step back, suddenly scared.

“You… do not look alright.”

“I’m just…” He makes a frustrated sound, passing a hand over his face and sighing. This huge alien who looks like a chubby, purple potato, this loud man who is part of the newest alien species just discovered in Heleus, this angara who expresses himself so freely and openly just like the rest of his species, is his sister’s boyfriend.

Her _first_ boyfriend, since her nerd ass never found someone intelligent enough to understand how special she is.

At least, that means this weird guy _is_ clever.

“How long… you two… you know…” Scott makes vague gestures, not even knowing how to formulate the question. Thankfully, Jaal understands what he’s trying to say and beams at him again.

“Oh, our first year is approaching! We’ve been together almost since the start of this epic journey.”

His smile turns conspiratorial and he adds, lowering his voice while leaning in: “Actually, our anniversary is… how do you humans say it? _Just around the angle_? Anyway, I was hoping you would help me with some gifts for her. It’s an important event for angara too, you know?”

Scott makes that choked sound again and hides his face behind a hand, torn between laughter and tears. Maybe he will go for both, if his heart doesn’t decide to kill him first.

“Are you sure you are fine?” Jaal insists and when he looks at him again, Scott sees he’s fidgeting, nervous like a child.

“To be honest, I was hoping you’d be happier about this.” he admits, hurt and worry and panic swirling in his galaxy-like eyes like a storm. “We met before. Chloe and I visited you while you were still in your coma.”

_Oh._

Jaal’s smile could light up the entire station. “She was so happy that day. She really wanted us to meet, so she brought me to the Cryo Bay in the Hyperion and we talked with you the whole time, even though you couldn’t hear us.”

Jaal starts fidgeting again and Scott is suddenly happy he can read his emotions so well: he’s like an open book and right now he can see how embarrassed and mortified he is.

“And I wished, hoped, that you would accept our relationship. But you look… upset?”

Scott feels terrible, as if he just kicked a puppy.

“I…” He sighs and decides to be honest, because Jaal _is_ being honest, he _always_ is.

“I’m not upset, Jaal, I’m just… surprised. And shocked _and_ confused. So much is going on, I _missed_ so much stuff, and I don’t know where to look and what to do. This day has been so long already and I still have to recover from the events of Meridian.”

Jaal nods and there is pure understanding on his face. For that, Scott is grateful.

“I’m happy for you and my sister. If she’s happy, then…” An Alec-like part of him takes control of his tongue and he shoots the angara a pointed look, asking quickly: “She _is_ happy, right? You are making her happy, aren’t you?”

Horror appears on Jaal’s face, as if the mere idea is preposterous.

“Of course I am!” A different kind of fear appears in his eyes and he turns back into an insecure, fidgeting teenager. “I… I hope?”

Two insecure men, a human and an angara, standing in front of each other, discussing the relationship one has with the sister of the other. It sounds like one of those cheap vids Mom secretly loved so much.

“Well.” Scott takes a deep breath and thinks Dad would do this too. “I’ll ask her myself then.”

“Yes, please do!” Jaal grasps his shoulders and the human realizes he has just planted the seed of doubt into his mind. He looks _terrified_. “I often wanted to ask her if she was happy with me, but I never found the courage!”

“Don’t worry.” Scott pats his arm and smiles awkwardly at him. “You… you look like a great guy. I’m sure she _is_ happy.”

Jaal beams at him again before pulling him into another bone-crushing hug.

“Scott Ryder! You truly are one of the best men in the galaxy!”

He doesn’t feel like it, but Jaal sounds so convinced and sincere, he almost believes it for a second.

“Come!” the angara excitedly tells him, pushing him ahead. “I’ll introduce you to the rest of the squad!”

That makes him feel better: it will be a good way to avoid thinking about Chloe’s engagement with this puzzling man, to reorder his thoughts, rest his mind and stop being an asshole.

The kind, mild part of him is actually ashamed of the way he treated Jaal, but tiredness and shock are making him petty and lazy and he knows he will stop being an ass only after a good night of sleep and some deep considerations about what the future holds for him and his sister.

As soon as he enters the Tempest, Scott’s heart and mind are already more at peace and even though Jaal talked a lot along the way, his mood didn’t suffer from it and he is still able to be civil.

“Everyone!” Jaal roars, his voice nearly making the ship tremble. “This is Scott Ryder!”

Two heads peek out from behind two different chairs: Scott recognizes the human woman with reddish hair and the bright lipstick, then he sees the salarian sitting at the other side. They smile at him and he waves at them both, smiling back.

“Oh, Scott! It’s so nice to see you standing!” the woman exclaims, getting up and approaching him, followed by the salarian. She shakes his hand, clasping her other one over his. “Suvi Anwar, science officer. Nice to meet you!”

“The pleasure is mine, Suvi.”

Scott shakes hands with the salarian too, his smile getting bigger. One of his best friends in middle school was a salarian.

“So happy to finally meet you. I’m Kallo Jath, pilot of the Tempest.”

“Wow, you make this beauty fly?”

“I _also_ designed it with my team.” Kallo proudly says, his smile content like a child’s.

Someone else enters the room, more than one person actually: a tall turian, a krogan, two asari, Cora Harper, and another human. Scott’s eyes automatically move to the two aliens and his heart flutters with joy: once again, he feels like he’s back in the Milky Way, where no kett exist, where only safe Prothean technology can be found.

“You’re pretty strong for being a squishy human, kid.” the krogan laughs, patting his shoulder with less force than Scott expected. “I’m Drack, by the way. Your sister is one hell of a girl.”

“I know.” Scott agrees, his smile proud. He blushes a little when the turian comes near. She is much taller than him and her eyes are attentive, but kind as she looks at him from behind her visor.

“Vetra Nyx.” she says, mandibles fluttering amicably, and she extends her hand, which Scott shakes immediately. “It’s so great to finally meet you in normal circumstances. We’ve heard a lot about you.”

“All good things, I hope.” he chuckles and Vetra nods, chuckling as well.

“Oh yeah, don’t worry. Also, if you need anything, just ask me. I can find basically everything, as long as it is in this cluster.”  

“Well, I need a new handkerchief because I’m drooling here.” a voice exclaims and a young asari walks over to him, staring at him without hiding her interest. Scott’s blush gets ten times worse.

“Aren’t you the cutest human in Andromeda? Pretty strong, too! Having your way with Remnant tech must have been painful.”

“Ah…” He clears his throat, not knowing where to look. “Yes, it was.”

“I’m Peebee!” the asari cheerfully says, taking his hand, shaking it and holding it longer than necessary. “Pleasure to meet you, Scotty!”

“Ask where her name comes from.” the human who came with Cora chuckles. Peebee glares at him, but the man ignores her to introduce himself to Scott with a smirk and a polite nod of his head, which Scott returns. “I’m Gil Brodie, chief engineer. This bubbly asari you just talked to pretends to be our Remnant expert.”

“ _Pretends?_ ” is Peebee’s outraged answer, but she is cut off by Cora and the other asari, who Scott recognizes as the doctor who took care of him on Meridian.

“Hello, Scott. I’m Lexi.” the doctor says, giving him a quick, but warm hug. “It’s good to see you like this.”

“Nice to see you again, Lexi.” He pats her back before she pulls away, then he smiles at Cora, who nods and smiles back. “Cora! Took me awhile, but we’re finally working together at last.”

“Ryder said you were a sleepyhead.” she chuckles, folding her arms. Right then, the door opens again and a shirtless Liam Kosta scrambles into the room.

“Sorry! Sorry, I overslept!”

His eyes fall on Scott and he gasps, mouth forming a ‘o’.

“Scott Ryder!” he shouts, his smile almost as big as Jaal’s. He opens wide his arms and pulls him into a tight hug, rubbing his back. “Man, I’m so happy to have you here! It’s gonna be fun, you’ll see!”

Scott met Liam before, even if just one time, a few hours before going into cryo. He was a cheerful man even back then, but he sounds and looks way more relaxed now. He wonders if Jaal’s influence has anything to do with that.

He then remembers about Jaal’s presence right behind his back. The angara never moved from there, most likely watching the exchange of hugs and pleasantries with a large smile on his face.

“Brother,” he tells him, resting a hand on his shoulder, and that sudden familiarity shocks Scott again, “you should visit the ship and put away your belongings. Don’t worry, I heard the crew quarters are quite comfortable.”

“Bullshit. Those shitty bunkbeds make my poor bones hurt.” Drack grumbles and Liam adds, a smartass grin on his sleepy face: “How would you know anyway, Jaal? First you slept in the tech lab, then you moved into Ryder’s quarters!”

Scott doesn’t even want to think about the implications of that. He _refuses_.

“That’s why I said ‘ _heard_ ’.” Jaal replies, his deep voice deeper than usual, his smirk as smug as Liam’s.

Scott’s frown is so massive the lines on his forehead are going to be etched into his skin for eternity.

“Speaking of Ryder,” Vetra says with a turian smile, nodding at the airlock, “look who’s back home.”

 _Home_. This is home now, that’s right. It will take him a while to get used to that.

But Scott doesn’t have time to think about that, because he’s finally going to see his sister again, this time not in an infirmary or while their brains are getting fried, but in normal, decent circumstances, like Vetra pointed out.

Chloe enters the room, hair tied in the usual ponytail, a big smile on her face, cheeks flushed red, blue eyes filled with cheerfulness. He remembers the meals they ate together, listening to Commander Shepard’s feats or watching cartoons; he remembers the afternoons spent playing in the streets of the Citadel, the bullies they defended each other from, the tears they shed for Mom, the ones they shed for Dad.

“Sis…!” he starts, but Jaal is faster than he is and he precedes him, laughing loudly and welcoming Chloe into his large arms.

“Darling One!”

“Hi, honey!” she laughs, hugging him tightly as he spins her around. The crew behind Scott giggles, snorts, or simply looks at the scene with amused smiles, but he stands there motionless, the same cold sensation of uselessness he is so used to by now coming back into his heart.

He can see how happy his sister is – happier than he ever saw her and _in love_ , just like Mom wished them to be -, and he is happy _for her_ , but he also feels lonely, as if he is still in the Cryo Bay, rotting on that white bed.

She found her new home, her new beginning, and he feels like he isn’t part of it. Jaal and the others have taken his place and he wonders how he will get used to all this loud noise, after spending so much time surrounded by the low beeps and soft sounds of the Cryo Bay.

His sister and Jaal’s laughter continues to resonate in the bridge and he waits, trying to hide his pain, just like he did during all those long months spent in bed.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I LIED, this fic is going to be longer than I expected ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

Jaal’s arms are the safest place in the galaxy.

Warm and strong, they wrap around Ryder like a protective barrier, shielding her from any harm, drowning her in his sweet, floral perfume and his little noises of happiness, which are accompanied by the electromagnetism flowing in his body, singing in tune with her heartbeat.

He is a piece of heaven fallen from the stars and she can’t still believe she was so lucky to find him and be with him. Their first date, the one in his family home, is still strongly vivid in her mind and she agrees with what he said that day.

_You make my heart sing._

He gently lowers her down onto the floor, but he hesitates a long second before pulling away; ending their hugs and kisses is always a hard thing to do, for both of them, but it got even more difficult for him after he saw her die again in Khi Tasira.

He smiles at her, watching her with that bright, loving smile he has for her only, then blinks quickly, remembering where they are and what he needs to show her.

“Look who is here!”

And behind him, Ryder sees her brother, finally standing, finally not so mortally pale anymore, finally breathing normally. There are dark circles under his eyes and his lips are chapped, but he is alive and well and that hole in her heart that Jaal and the Tempest crew managed to close quite a bit is finally almost sealed completely.

“Scott!” she exclaims happily, running into his arms. This one is an even more familiar hug, one that speaks of the first home they left behind, of the days spent at Mom’s side while she slowly lost her battle to her illness, of the times they finally saw each other again after being separated for months due to their jobs, of Dad’s awkward jokes that SAM now inherited.

“I’m so happy you are here, little bro.” she says, squeezing him tightly, already imagining all the fun they are gonna have, just like old times. Now that he is on the Tempest too, her family truly is almost complete – they only need Mom.

She makes a mental note to talk to her friends as soon as possible about this – Cora deserves to know why she wasn’t chosen as Pathfinder and everyone deserves to learn about Ellen Ryder’s actual conditions. They are her friends, her new family, and that’s something too big, too important, something that she cannot kept in her heart anymore, especially not with Jaal.

But for now, this topic will have to wait. First comes Scott, his health, the consequences he suffered under the Archon’s attack, his future life on the ship, his future relationships with the crew and Jaal.

Lexi warned her that there might be some problems with his psychological stability and Ryder doesn’t blame him; she is feeling frailer than usual too, but she has had more lifelines keeping her afloat than he has.

It’s her duty and pleasure, as older sister, to help him with this too. And she knows the others will support him as well.

“Did you see the Nexus? Isn’t it great?” she continues, without letting him go. His hold on her has actually gotten stronger, almost painful, and she can feel him tremble. He is hiding his face against her shoulder and she pauses after hearing a hiccup.

The crew falls silent and their smiles disappear as Scott starts sobbing.

Behind her, Jaal gasps and immediately comes closer; Liam and Lexi step forward too, while the others share worried looks or watch the scene with melancholic eyes.

The last time he cried like this was when Mom ‘died’. They cried together, in the living room, until the sky got dark and Dad finally left his room to tell them to eat something.

(His eyes were red too and his face too pale, but he looked calmer than what they had expected and now she understands why.)

“Scott.” she calls softly, rubbing his back, but that only causes him to cry harder.

“Ryder, I’m sensing high levels of stress in Scott’s body.” SAM intervenes, his tone softer than usual, and she nods, resting her cheek on her brother’s hair. He smells like too-clean sheets and medicines.

“I know, SAM.” she says. Scott hiccups again, sniffles, and finally his sobs end. He slowly pulls away and she can see his face: mottled red cheeks, his dark circles darker than before, his eyes bloodshot.

He’s still trembling and his nose is running a bit; she sees Kallo rummage into his pocket and hand him a clean handkerchief, which Scott takes with a shaky, brief smile.

“Thank you.” he says, his voice too rough and hoarse, like sandpaper rubbed on rock, and he dries his eyes and nose, one hand still clinging to Ryder’s shirt.

“Better?” she asks, shooting him a big smile, and he nods, humming.

“I’m sorry.” he babbles, suddenly embarrassed. “I didn’t mean to… to…”

“Scott, you know what I did the first night I spent here?” Liam says, entering his field of vision to reassure him with a grin. “I cried like a baby. I’m not kidding! All night, big, fat tears that never stopped.”

“Same.” Suvi adds with a nod and a somewhat sad, but warm smile. “It is perfectly normal. And you went through _so much_ , I would be surprised to _not_ see you cry.”

“You know what you need? Drack’s Surprise.” The old krogan puts his hands on his hips, ready to get to work. “It’s gonna make you feel alive again in no time. Just give me three hours and it’s yours, kid.”

“What… what is Drack’s Surprise?” Scott giggles, still rubbing his eyes. His sister laughs and explains, shaking her head with fondness: “A special dish. Drack is pretty good at cooking, you know?”

“Kid, you say that as if I’m not good at other things too.”

“Don’t worry, he will make it extra spicy, just for you.” Ryder promises, patting her brother’s hand, and he nods. He’s breathing better and there is a small, but genuine smile on his pale lips.

“Remember, you can cry whenever and wherever you want.” she says slowly, almost a soothing whisper, something she learned from Jaal.

Speaking of him, he is standing next to her and he rests a hand on Scott’s shoulder, his eyes kind and full of affection.

“Brother,” he says, his deep, rumbling voice sending a warm shiver down her spine and filling her heart with peace, “there is no shame in crying. Let all your emotions out and let us help you.”

Right in that moment, she sees it. Scott’s expression changes drastically and he stiffens as soon as Jaal’s hand touches his shoulder. He casts his eyes down and just mumbles something that sounds affirmative.

That’s enough for Jaal, who apparently doesn’t notice the way her twin tensed up, but Ryder knows Scott well and she recognized the emotions on his face.

 _‘What is going on?’_ she thinks, the warm shiver from before turning into cold sweat. She has a bad feeling about this.

On their private channel, SAM chimes in: “Chloe, Scott’s stress levels and heartbeat have increased. I do not know him well like I know you, but I believe he is experiencing what organics refer to as rage and annoyance.”

“Yes, I saw it.” she agrees, watching her brother talk with Lexi. He looks completely calm now and that dark shadow in his eyes is gone, replaced by sleepiness and drained, tired, but stubborn enthusiasm.

“Perhaps Scott’s encounter with Mr. Ama Darav…”

Ryder manages to curl her lips into a small smile, despite her worry. “You can call him Jaal, SAM, you know that.”

“… Perhaps his encounter with Jaal didn’t go well. May I suggest to speak with your beloved?”

Ryder turns to her big, tall, adorable boyfriend. A hand on her waist, he is watching Scott talk with the others too and there is a thoughtful expression on his face; he doesn’t look worried or disappointed, just very busy with his thoughts.

“Hey.” she calls softly, gently tracing the scar on his cheek. He immediately looks down at her and smiles, the hand on her waist sending pleasant vibrations into her skin.

“Yes, my Darling One?”

Should she ask him here and now? _How_ is she supposed to ask this, anyway? Is there even a right way?

‘ _Hey, honey, was your encounter with my brother that you pictured in your head for days a disaster?’_

She knows Jaal prefers to be talked to in a clear, direct way, without useless paraphrases, but this might be too direct even for him.

However, if things really went wrong, he would tell her, right? He would _show_ it.

She sees no sadness or pain on his face; he was overjoyed, thrilled, when he showed her Scott and he still looks completely calm.

Maybe he didn’t realize something was wrong during his meeting with her brother?

Or perhaps _nothing_ went wrong and she and SAM are just reading too much into this and…

“My Darling One?” Jaal’s face is so very close to hers now. “Are you alright?”

She focuses on him and his eyes and all her worries suddenly disappear, as if they never existed. He has that special effect on her and he told her she has the same on him.

“Yes.” she answers, smiling happily. She kisses him and a new smile immediately blooms on his face too. “Let’s show Scott the ship.”

“Excellent idea-”

“No.” it’s Lexi’s peremptory answer. She glares at them both, a hand on Scott’s arm. “For now, let’s just show him where his bed is, then he will go straight to the medbay.”

“Harry examined me one last time before I left!” he weakly protests, but she doesn’t even want to hear it and her next glare is for him. It’s both professional and maternal, an unbeatable combination that leaves Scott defenseless.

“Fine.” he groans, before eyeing his sister with quiet despair and a silent request.

“Of course I’ll come with you, silly.” she laughs and she is relieved to see him beam at her.

She misses the way his smile fades away, though, when Jaal tags along and she takes his hand.

 

She made sure to give him the best bed in the crew quarters, the one with the softest mattress, the one two centimeters longer than the others, the one with the best pillow.

Drack is right, they are not all the same, but she will never admit it.

Peebee begs Vetra to switch beds, so she can sleep above Scott and “share bedtime stories with him”, but the turian snorts and refuses, saying her turian mattress weighs too much to be moved.

“And I know what kind of stories you are talking about.”

“ _Not_ the sexy type, of course!” But her lie is evident and she tries to distract Scott by telling him of the time she used to sleep in one of the escape pods of the ship.

“Then I jettisoned Ryder and myself…”

“And me.” Cora grumbles from the terminal she’s using to add Scott to the Infoboard.

“… _and_ Cora into a volcano, so I had to move into another room. This one, to be precise.”

Scott looks appalled by the idea of his sister fighting her way into an erupting volcano, but he has regained enough self-control to avoid snapping at Peebee’s recklessness and smile awkwardly at her.

“There, you are in.” Cora announces, then she proceeds to show him the characteristics of the chat the crew shares to exchange messages and important information.

At least, that’s how she describes it, but Scott wasn’t born yesterday and he immediately sees how funny, simple, _domestic_ the topics discussed are.

“Suvi, you… you got your mug stuck on a box in the engine room?” he asks in disbelief, reading one of the many posts where the science officer’s mug suffered a terrible fate, just like her coffee.

“More than once.” Gil comments from the door with a dramatic sigh, sticking out his tongue at her when Suvi pouts at him.

Meanwhile, Drack and Kallo are in the galley, unboxing rations and preparing dinner – if the salarians and krogans of the past could see the scene, they would be disgusted, but Drack treats Kallo just like he treats the rest of the crew and Kallo gossips with him with the same easiness he gossips with Suvi.

There are already spicy and pungent smells in the air and even if Drack’s Surprise will take a while to be ready, there is more food they can eat before starting the real dinner.

Peebee, Liam, and Vetra agree to prepare the tables together – they needed to buy a second, foldable one after realizing Drack and Jaal took half of the space in the galley –, while Gil shows Scott the bathroom, already apologizing for the small size.

“So, the Pathfinder doesn’t have her own shower?” Scott half-heartedly jokes, smirking at his sister from above his shoulder. She and Jaal are making more space in the wardrobe, so that he will be able to put his stuff in there as he most prefers; she shoots him a pointed look, pretending to be offended, and replies curtly: “I am a selfless, humble Pathfinder.”

“You can’t modify the layout of the ship and build a second bathroom in your quarters, silly.”

“Who says that?”

“Uh, Kallo?” Gil intervenes, raising his eyebrows. “I’m sure I just heard him gasp. Don’t say these things when he’s around, Scott, or he’s gonna die sooner than most salarians.”

He and Scott laugh at that, promptly reprimanded by Suvi and Cora, but even though the joke was silly, Ryder finds herself smiling, because her brother finally looks and sounds like himself again.

What she saw before in his eyes, that weird rage mixed with irritability, was probably caused by his tiredness, a natural impulse born out of stress.

Jaal is smiling too. Now that she thinks about it, he has been smiling _a lot_ , more than usual, since their victory against the Archon. No, perhaps even before that: he has been happier, even more open and extroverted, since their beautiful, _perfect_ day on Aya, when they made love to each other for the first time.

She watches him move, take out, and put stuff into the wardrobe, studying its size, calculating all the space Scott might need with precision and care. He is humming under his breath, a melody she never heard before, probably an angaran tune, and she giggles.

He turns to her, blushing a little – she _can_ see it now -, but his smile doesn’t falter and he asks, curious: “Why are you laughing, my light?”

“It’s nothing. You just look really excited.” She pecks his cheek and he grins, nodding quickly.

“I am! This is so much similar to when a sibling returns after a long journey or their trip to Aya! A member of our family is coming back home. It’s an important event.”

He looks at Scott, who is studying the desk and small pantry of the room, and calls him, raising his voice so much even Drack and Kallo in the galley probably heard him.

“Brother! Come put your stuff in here!” He laughs, hands on his hips, and promises him: “Then we will accompany you to the medbay!”

Ryder sees it again: that glint in Scott’s eyes, something akin to distaste, but not quite. It’s definitely close to _anger_ , though, and she can’t deny it anymore.

Something _is_ wrong, whether Jaal knows it or not.

That look lasts only a millisecond – enough for her to see it and recognize it -, then Scott smiles – a too polite, shaky thing to be considered warm and genuine enough – and says: “I’m coming.”

He starts putting his armor and clothes into the – large – space Jaal and Ryder made for him, all while Jaal tries to start a conversation with him, giving him advices to maximize the benefits of the space available, the best combinations of the different parts of his armor and outfits, his memories of home and his childhood which greatly helped him develop such expertise.

“With so many siblings, it’s only natural to learn how and where put your stuff.” he chuckles, but once again Scott replies with a simple, short sound and that same polite smile that doesn’t really mean anything.

For someone as open as Jaal, that reaction is the equivalent of someone telling him to shut up and go away with a punch to the face. For the humans in the room, it’s not that much different and the mood suddenly and abruptly changes, as if someone turned all the lights on and showed things as they really were.

Scott is still tense and stiff and every time Jaal gets too close or Ryder touches his arm, he jolts as if burned and frowns, ignoring both of them with a stubbornness that could rival their Dad’s.

Jaal now senses – _sees_ – that something is off; that painful realization is written on his face, plain as day, but he is as stubborn as Scott or perhaps just too kind and hopeful, and so he doesn’t give up, trying again and again to make him talk, to finally start being _brothers_ , _brothers-in-law_ , and not just _acquaintances_.

Chloe is about to cry. Spending so much time with Jaal and the angara in general really made her softer, but not in a bad way, that way that mercenaries and outlaws in the vids always sneer at, believing it to be equal to weakness.

It’s a softness that makes the heart and the mind stronger and she can’t understand how she lived without it until now.

Still, it can make things harder than usual sometimes: like when she and the crew watch sad vids and she finally lets herself go without shame, promptly followed by Liam and Suvi and sometimes even by Kallo and Gil. Or like when the Nexus’ expectations are too many and she feels overwhelmed and the stress weighs on her like a boulder.

But even then, they are natural reactions, natural responses to the world around her that humans usually try to keep down, hidden in their hearts and rooms, to avoid feeling ashamed in public. But being ashamed for one’s feelings is something that doesn’t exist in angaran society and it seems like the Milky Way species are slowly learning that from them, a lesson they should have learned much sooner.

She hopes they are teaching good things to the angara in return. Jaal said they _are_ , that the humans’ creativity and the turians’ sense of honor are precious gifts to witness and experience, and she believes him, because he is always honest and his honesty never replaces kindness.

This is why she could understand Scott’s first reaction upon being thrown into this new life aboard the Tempest. She can relate so much to him now, more than before, but this particular annoyance directed at Jaal only indicates that his stress disorder and trauma are not the only causes of his behavior.

“All done.” her brother announces, closing the wardrobe and stepping back at the speed of light, far from her and Jaal. Their family has never been particularly touchy-feely, but they still knew how to hug or pat each other’s back.

This distance feels wrong, forced: he’s deliberately avoiding them, as if he fears to catch who knows what disease or get trapped in their tight hugs.

“I’m going to Lexi, now.” he says, smiling awkwardly at them, aware of the fact that _they_ are aware of his problem now. He walks backwards, still facing them, opening and closing his mouth while his brain attempts to find something clever to say, but nothing comes out and in the end the door automatically opens.

“We can accompany you if-” Ryder starts, but he shakes his head, eyes going wide with panic, and he cuts her off: “No! No, thanks, sis. I mean, the ship isn’t that big, I won’t get lost.”

He tries to smile again, but fails and then he leaves, leaving her, her boyfriend, and their friends alone in the room, stunned and embarrassed.

“Poor guy really needs a good night of sleep.” Gil breaks the silence in the end, getting some affirmative hums from Cora and Suvi, but Ryder watches the closed door with a growing sense of dread in the pit of her stomach.

It gets better only when Jaal’s hand touches the small of her back and she feels his lips touch the top of her head.

 

\- - - -

 

She doesn’t dare join Scott and Lexi in their conversation; it’s private and too delicate, especially since it will most likely be a psychological session. She is sure Lexi will be able to make him feel better and help him understand what is causing him so much trouble and pain.

Drack’s Surprise will take a while, so she and Jaal take refuge in their quarters, far from Cora’s questioning looks – _What is wrong with your brother, Ryder?_ – and Gil’s sorry eyes – _That sucked._

She needs to talk with Jaal and this is the perfect time and place to do so. Gone are his excitement and joy: he sits quietly and somberly on their bed, cleaning his rifle, his Rofjinn lying next to him.

“Sweetheart.” she calls, knowing he _adores_ when she calls him sweet names and uses funny endearments.

 _They make me feel part of your heart_ , he said once and she replied, causing him to nearly cry there and then: _You are_.

He raises his eyes from the weapon, but doesn’t speak, waiting for her to do so. She sits on the bed and rests her head on his shoulder, watching his large hands rub a smooth cloth on the rifle and dismantle it easily to reach the inner parts.

It’s a sight she saw before, back when they still weren’t together, when they still weren’t even friends; they took apart weapons and modded them together in a pleasant silence, sharing advices and ideas once in a while, learning more about each other that way.

This time the silence isn’t exactly pleasant; it’s familiar, calm, and they both feel safe in each other’s presence, but Jaal’s eyes are worried and the galaxies in them swirl sadly, slower than usual.

Chloe kisses his scarred cheek, enjoying the slightly electrical feeling, and calls again: “Darling One.”

At that, he moves his head and lightens up a little, even showing a small, precious smile.

“Yes?”

“Tell me what troubles you.”

Jaal goes back to cleaning his rifle and she doesn’t stop him, knowing he needs those repetitive movements to calm down and let his mind focus on something else rather than his worries. He told her so once, when he was busy making gifts for the crew. She remembers everything he tells her.

“I don’t think Scott likes me.” he says in the end, a barely audible whisper that contains all the sadness and shame in the world.

He is _ashamed_ because he thinks it’s his fault? That he failed her?

She is definitely going to cry now.

“Honey,” she starts, hoping her voice won’t break too much as she speaks, “that’s not true. Scott likes you, he’s just…”

_He’s just tired. Scared. I think?_

Where is Mom when you need her? She could always understand Scott better than she or Dad could.

“He’s just gone through a lot, like everyone else. But he has been alone and far from us, from me, for quite some time and it’s hard to get back into things when they are so new and…”

“And alien.” he gently interrupts her, his smile smaller, frailer, than before. “I understand that, _taoshay_ , I completely do. But I fear this is about me in particular.”

She swallows, knowing he might be right. She prays he’s not, she prays Scott is just being really sensitive to Jaal’s louder manners and that he’s going to treat him kindly in a day or two, but something tells her things are more complicated than that.

“He likes you.” she repeats, to convince both him and herself. Jaal frowns, confused, and asks: “Did he tell you so? When?”

“I…! No, he didn’t tell me, but…” She sighs, sliding her arms around his and resting her cheek on his shoulder again, watching his hands go still on the rifle. “I can see it. I know he likes you, Jaal, he just needs time to get used to all this.”

“I saw something else.” he says softly. “Your brother tries to hide his true feelings, but he is not very good at it, just like angara. I saw distaste in his eyes.”

Chloe grimaces and bites her lips. Jaal might be the biggest sweetheart in the world, but he isn’t naïve and very few people can hide things from him and his perceptive, brilliant mind.

“Jaal.” She raises her head and sees he’s watching her intently, his expression a weird mix between resignation and hope. “Maybe – _maybe_ – he doesn’t like you _now_ , but he will do soon. I’m sure of that, believe me.”

“It might help knowing _why_ he doesn’t like me.” he softly whispers, self-consciousness dripping heavily from each of his word. “Maybe I shouldn’t have hugged him when I met him outside the Cultural Center?”

Chloe snorts, trying to imagine her brother being lifted up by her bulky, tall angaran boyfriend. The scene looks funny in her head, but considering how antsy and nervous Scott seems to be, it’s probable he was deeply annoyed by it.

“It’s because of that, isn’t it?” Jaal sighs, looking at the stars visible from the window with a small, adorable pout.

“You probably were one of the first angara he ever saw. And speaking of angara, he never interacted with your species before, so he probably doesn’t know how to act around you. Maybe he fears to disrupt months of delicate diplomacy or who knows what else.”

Jaal turns to her again and she smiles, feeling confident about her reasoning, which she believes to be one of the reasons her brother is being so standoffish around Jaal. But her boyfriend isn’t so sure and he tells her so, frowning as he thinks hard about it.

“But, light of my life… you weren’t like that _at all_ when you first met me and my people.”

She blinks, blushing a little.

“I was not?”

“No.” Jaal smirks, putting the rifle aside to wrap his arms around her. “You were professional and kind. Sometimes you looked unsure about what to say or do, but you rarely lost your control. You always treated us – and me – with great respect.”

His words make her blush even more and smile goofily, but it hurts a little to know that Scott, in comparison, can be considered _extremely_ rude.

“Well, what can I say – you guys were and are amazing.” she says, grinning at him, but his smile is sweet and soft like his kisses and the utter adoration in his eyes is vast like the sky, so much her silly joke feels out of place and she immediately gets serious again.

“You are.” she repeats, a loving whisper that caresses his lips. “You are amazing.”

She kisses him, a hand on his cheek, the other on his shoulder, and his hands pull her closer to his chest so that he can deepen the kiss.

“Especially you, Jaal Ama Darav. Never doubt that.” she concludes after they pull away, lips moist and eyes full of emotion.

His fear, which he was able to push down for a bit, comes back and he babbles, looking for reassurance: “Do you think he will change his mind about me?”

“Of course he will! He just needs more time. He needs to know you better.” She cups his cheeks and rests her forehead against his, breathing deeply. His perfume smells stronger today. He must have used more of it for the big day and her heart beats painfully in her chest at the thought.

“He’s probably a bit jealous too.” she laughs, but Jaal is confused by that notion.

“Jealous? Of what?”

“Well… brothers and fathers can be overprotective of their sisters and daughters, when a partner enters the scene.”

Jaal hums at that, frowning a little.

“Really? Angara are protective of all their children and siblings, no matter who they are.”

“I know. But things are different for some humans. They fear their sister or daughter’s partner might take her away from them. It’s…” Chloe makes a funny sound, rolling her eyes. “It’s silly, I know.”

“It is.” Jaal agrees, his frown bigger. “Why would their daughter or sister be taken away from them by her beloved? They would still be her family, still be in her heart, still belong to her soul!”

“See?” She kisses his nose. “This is why you guys are the best.”

Jaal laughs at that, but then he gets serious again – almost _solemn_ – and asks quietly: “Darling One… do you think your dad would have been jealous too? Would have he liked me?”

That makes her brain stop of a bit. She is almost surprised not to hear SAM announce that all her brain activities have been interrupted.

She recalls her father’s mannerisms and ways, his serious face when twelve-years-old Chloe first confessed to him and Mom there was a turian kid she liked in her multi-species school; his small, but amused smile when he told her to go for it and see how it went.

She recalls the red spots on his cheeks when Mom first gave her and Scott The Talk, his hand covering his eyes when she started talking about reproduction.

She remembers him sitting on Scott’s bed, giving him advices about one of his crushes in high-school, and his voice every time he told her to be careful on the streets, no matter the time of day, because “there are seriously fucked-up individuals around, so remember your training”.

Then she thinks about Jaal, so earnest, kind, thoughtful, and loving, so protective in his own way, so funny and sweet, so strong and selfless, so smug and timid.

She pictures him shaking hands with her dad in the angaran way, modding weapons and shooting kett together, talking about the Milky Way – Dad would smile at the way he pronounces it -, about Aya, about life and family and love.

Then she pictures Dad awkwardly hugging Sahuna, standing stiffly at the center of Jaal’s house, surrounded by countless of curious siblings and children, and in the end letting them study his beard and N7 armor with a chuckle.

He would thank Sahuna for Jaal and then he would thank Jaal for the love he is giving his daughter.

“Yes.” she says in the end, tears in her eyes and a big smile on her face. “Yes, he would _adore_ you.”

Jaal smiles too, brushing away her tears with his thumbs, and there are relief and contentment on his face. Then he gets timid and if his hands weren’t on her face, he would probably start fidgeting.

“What… what about your mom? Would have she liked me too?”

 _She will_. If those wistful fantasies about Dad meeting Jaal and his family are just that – fantasies that won’t ever become true now -, those starring Mom can still be real. She is alive and SAM is sure a cure will be found, hopefully before Chloe and Scott reach her same age.

The problem is that she still hasn’t told Jaal that. He still doesn’t know about Ellen Ryder’s conditions and she wonders why she didn’t tell him sooner. He would only be happy, crazy with joy for her, and they would have one more beautiful thing to look forward to.

She knows she should ask Scott first – Ellen is his mother too, after all -, but she also knows that Jaal will never tell this to anyone if she asks him to, so she can prepare herself to tell the others.

She decides to tell him. Here, in their room, surrounded by stars, while Drack’s Surprise slowly takes form in the oven and Scott vents with Lexi in the medbay.

“She will.” she says with a confident nod of her head and at first Jaal smiles, looking like the happiest man in the galaxy, but then he makes a confused sound and blinks.

“She _will_?”

She starts to explain it to him; he already knows about her father’s locked memories and initially he nods, listening intently to her. Then she mentions the benefactor – and for a second she almost tells him about the Reapers too, but that would be a too big burden; it’s so painful she has to pretend she never heard about it in the first place and she knows Jaal would feel and experience her same pain as if he was part of the Milky Way Galaxy too.

SAM intervenes too, explaining things more clearly or offering more insight into Alec’s actions and wishes, and here Jaal’s eyes start to widen. At the end of the explanation, his mouth hangs open and he can only stare at her, speechless.

“Uh… Jaal?” She laughs nervously, tugging at his hand. “Are you okay?”

He closes his mouth and then something that she always considers like a gift from heaven happens: he starts laughing, triumphantly and joyously, and he takes her in his arms, swirling her around.

“My Darling One! This is wonderful, marvelous news!”

She laughs with him and he is as excited as she was when she learned the truth: there are tears in his eyes and he talks fast, babbling, and can’t stay still; his hands touch her everywhere, her face, her waist, her shoulders, and he asks more questions, to her and SAM, and in the end he stops, smiling at her like she is the best thing in the world, like he knew things would go this way because she is perfect and she deserves only the best.

“My love.” he says, taking her hands, and leaning in just like he did on the bridge of the ship, the day they fought the Archon, only that this time they are not going to war, but moving towards peace and _a place of our own_ instead.

“My heart is bursting with joy.” He nuzzles her nose and she giggles, sniffling, because tears are in her eyes too. “Your father’s secret… is this why you waited to tell us?”

“Yes, but I should have told you sooner. Just… can we just wait a little more before telling the others? This is pretty big stuff and if rumors started spreading around on the Nexus…”

“Of course!” He brushes back her bangs and his gloved fingers linger a bit on her hair. He has always been fascinated by it. “Of course, my Darling One.”

She bites her lower lip and adds, slowly, carefully: “There is something else too. This concerns the Milky Way Galaxy and it’s even more serious, but… I need more time. Can you… can you wait some more to hear it?”

He chuckles, in that endearing way that means ‘you’re such an adorable woman’, and nods, still brushing her hair and stroking her face, his electromagnetism sending playful sparks down her neck and shoulders.

“Take all the time you need.” He lowers his voice and rests his forehead on hers again, murmuring: “Thank you for trusting me with this, Darling One.”

“You make me feels safe.” she says, smiling brightly, and he looks so happy she is sure she will start seeing rainbows appear in the room soon.

“Chloe, Jaal,” SAM suddenly speaks, making them both jump, “Mr. Kosta and Scott are asking for permission to enter your quarters.”

“Oh!” She and Jaal exchange a surprised look, then she nods and replies: “Let them enter, SAM.”

They pull away from each other a little bit to avoid upsetting Scott, but he will have to get used to them sooner or later, so they end up holding their hands as he and Liam step into the room.

“Hey, guys! Scott here wants to see the rest of the ship. I thought he could start from here.” Liam sighs and gestures at the whole room, letting his arms fall with a wistful expression. “Look at that view. Look at all _this space_.”

“The perks of being a Pathfinder.” Ryder quips smugly, earning herself a grin from Liam and a half-smile from her brother.

His eyes linger on Jaal and it seems he doesn’t know how to look at him, whether with exasperation for finding him in his sister’s quarters (although he knows this is his room too) or curiosity.

He opts for hiding it all and pretending the angara isn’t even there, so he looks around after thanking Liam - who quickly leaves the room - and whistles.

“This is quite the room.” His eyes move across it, from the planetary view that shows the situation on the outposts, to the desk, which Ryder and Jaal share with each other.

Their stuff is there – various tech pieces, small weaponry, salves, datapads, Chloe’s books -, but Scott pretends not to see it, just like he pretends he can’t see Jaal’s Rofjinn on the bed and his armor and belts peeking out from the wardrobe and boxes near the bed.

“SAM! You’re here!” he exclaims, smiling at the holographic figure of the AI.

“Hello, Scott. Are you feeling better?”

He hesitates, taken aback, but he quickly regains his composure and answers, smiling: “Yes, thank you. Lexi is a great doctor.”

“I’m glad to hear so.”

Then he sees Alec’s helmet. At first, he is almost too overwhelmed to approach the small table, but then he slowly walks over to it and hovers his fingers over the glass, then brushes them against the name Alec etched on the side of the helmet so many years ago.

It lasts only a few minutes, but at the end of it Scott’s hands are shaking and there is that haunted look in his eyes again.

“Scott.” Chloe moves near him and touches his shoulder, a gentle poke to make him look at her. “Little bro, let’s go see the cargo bay and the other parts of the ship.”

He nods and moves to follow her out of the room; Jaal of course comes with them and the two of them stop at the door, unsure whether to proceed or let the other pass first.

“Uh…”

“Mh…”

Jaal fidgets and Scott avoids his eyes, watching his sister move along the corridor; she is blissfully unaware of what is happening just two steps behind her, but if they don’t answer her soon she will turn back and see how childish and stupid they are.

Scott hesitates some more; Jaal’s good manners and his strong desire to be liked by his future brother-in-law force him to let him pass, but the human doesn’t understand his intentions or maybe he’s too proud to accept his offer.

“You first.” Scott babbles in the end, smiling awkwardly at him, but Jaal shakes his head.

“No, you first!”

Scott frowns, his politeness replaced by that same annoyance and confusion from before.

“I insist.”

Jaal’s fidgeting gets worse and he glances at Ryder, who is talking to Drack and Kallo from the corridor. She still hasn’t seen what her boyfriend and her brother are doing and he hopes they will resolve this issue before she does.

“It would make me really happy to let you precede me, brother.” Jaal insists, hoping sincerity will help him in this difficult challenge.

Scott narrows his eyes at him and stays quiet.

Maybe not, then.

“Why are you always so kind?” he suddenly asks, bitterness in his voice, sadness in his eyes. He looks like Chloe, but at the same time he doesn’t and he definitely doesn’t sound like her. It scares and confuses Jaal beyond measure.

“You don’t even know me. You don’t have to treat me like this just because I’m your girlfriend’s brother.”

“I don’t treat you with kindness because of that. Not _just_ because of that, anyway.” Jaal shakes his head, wondering if his hug at the start of their encounter could really be the cause of all this distaste.

“You are family. You were always there for Chloe and you love her. I know you have a gentle, selfless heart. Why shouldn’t I treat you kindly and respect you?”

Something breaks in Scott and his tired, drained eyes suddenly come alive; a dangerous fire burns in them and he snaps at Jaal, fists closed, voice rising to too high levels: “That’s not true! I _wasn’t_ there for her, for anybody! I did _nothing_! And you can keep your… your _sympathy_ and _pity_ and shove them where the sun doesn’t shine!”

If Ryder didn’t hear them before, now she definitely did. The _entire ship_ heard them, in fact, and everyone’s head is peeking out from the open doors, like curious animals alerted by the sounds around them.

Jaal has no idea what Scott meant with that last idiom – he will have to ask Chloe about that -, but he understands it’s offensive and crude and his heart hurts. He can see pain and ire and shame on Scott’s face, together with new tears and a too heavy breathing, and he realizes that his hug and his manners weren’t really the cause of all this.

Ryder is coming back to them, almost running. She looks back and forth from Scott to Jaal, asking for an explanation, anything, but both men stay quiet, Scott looking down at the ground, Jaal looking at him, waiting for him to calm down so they can finally talk normally and fix this before it becomes too big and complicated.

He wants them to be friends. He wants Chloe to be happy. He wants Scott to be happy too. He wants him to be part of the family – no, he _already_ is, he has always been. Why is he so scared? Why does he say he did nothing? Why does he feel worthless?

Jaal cannot understand that. Nobody among the angara is considered useless or worthless, not even those who betray their people, like Vehn Terev, who is still tending to flowers and plants on Aya despite selling the Moshae to the Archon.

“What is happening? What’s wrong?” Ryder asks, her panic rising, and Jaal shakes his head.

“I do not know.”

“I… I’m sorry.” Scott murmurs, then he finally exits the room, walking past his sister and ignoring her when she calls to him. The ship is so small and he still doesn’t know it well, so he takes shelter in one of the few rooms he already knows, the crew quarters, and closes the door behind himself.

A heavy silence falls in the Tempest, broken by Lexi’s sigh.

“This is going to take much time.” she says, almost like a warning to everyone present.

“I don’t understand.” Jaal insists, looking at Ryder with big, sad eyes. “It’s like this is because of me, but at the same time it’s not.”

“Maybe it’s both.” Kallo suggests with a shrug. He’s wearing an apron dirty with red sauce and brown spots, while Drack’s is miraculously clean.

“It’s gonna take him more than time to get better.” The krogan clears his throat, glancing at Lexi. “Mine is not a doctor’s opinion, though.”

“You are right.” Lexi concedes gracefully, tapping her thumb against her chin. “He needs time, rest, and cures. I already provided him all he needs, but the rest is up to him and us.”

Ryder lets out a sigh; shoulders slumped, she looks drained of all energies just like her brother and a bit lost. She knew things wouldn’t be easy, but she didn’t think they would be this bad.

Jaal takes her hand and squeezes it, making her smile again, even if for a little while.

“Is it a good idea to let him stay here?” Vetra asks, causing some people, Ryder and Jaal included, to stare at her in disbelief. “I mean…! Here, on an exploration vessel, where things might go wrong any minute! We still have to fight kett and other nasty creatures almost every day and the Nexus and Aya ask a lot from us.”

“He and Ryder have been apart for a year, Vetra!” Suvi exclaims, shaking her head. “Separating them again would only make things worse!”

“Yeah, he needs to feel useful. Active. Alive. Not rot some more in a white room.” Cora agrees, rubbing her neck. Gil, next to her, glances at Jaal and Ryder, who both look like two kicked puppies holding hands, and sighs.

“Guys, come on. He’s gonna get better!”

“It’s just his first day.” Peebee agrees, munching one of the dry cookies she stole from the galley while Drack and Kallo were distracted. Both are glaring at her, but she bravely ignores them. “I’m sure we will see good results in a month or so.”

“For now, let’s give him some space.” Lexi says this while looking at Chloe and Jaal, who gloomily nod. The doctor sighs, rolling her eyes. “And… let’s not discuss this in the corridor, where he can hear everything.”

A hushed chorus of ‘shit’ resonates for a moment, then everyone goes back to do whatever they were doing before being interrupted.

Ryder and Jaal go back to their quarters and they reassure and comfort each other there, kissing and cuddling, finding hope and reassurance in each other’s arms.

Drack and Kallo call everyone for dinner half an hour later and they are glad to see Scott be part of the group, even though his eyes are puffy and red, sign that he cried a lot.

He sits next to Chloe, perfectly silent, and doesn’t even look at Jaal when he sits at his sister’s other side. He cracks a smile when Vetra makes a joke about Drack’s cooking and chuckles softly when Suvi almost chokes on the spicy sauce.

Liam is unusually late; he didn’t even witness the argument in the corridor and he basically scrambles into the room after being called through the comm for the third time.

“Sorry! Sorry! I was busy looking for these!”

He hands Scott too white, plastic _thingies_. Everyone gasps and looks away, except for Ryder and Jaal, who looks at that curious gift in complete bewilderment.

Scott is rather confused too.

“… Earbuds?”

“Yeah, man! Nights in the Tempest are loud!”

Cora hides her face behind a napkin; Suvi and Peebee make gestures in the background, desperately trying to catch Liam’s attention; Vetra clears her throat and taps her fork against the table, hoping to obtain the same result, but in vain.

Chloe and Jaal share an even more stunned look, speechless, while Scott smiles and says: “Liam, I’m used to loud snoring. Back on the Arcturus Station, there was a colleague of mine who…”

“Oh, I’m not talking about snoring.” Liam wiggles his eyebrows.

“No…?” Scott looks both scared and intrigued, then he realizes what the other man means and he turns three deeper shades of red.

“Oh! You mean you guys… in that tiny room… uh…”

“Ew, no!” Liam laughs, grimacing. “The good stuff happens somewhere else. And believe me, it’s _loud_. Someone here just lets it all go.”

He nods at Ryder and Jaal with a grin. They aren’t ashamed – they are perfectly aware of how loud they can be in bed -, but they didn’t know the others used such contraptions to avoid hearing them.

They definitely know, though, that Scott is not going to like this.

In fact, another massive frown appears on the young man’s face and he stares down at the white earbuds on his hand with something much similar to disgust, embarrassment, and _maybe_ a bit of amusement all mixed together.

Only then Liam notices the others’ murderous looks. Ryder, in particular, looks about to throw her plate at him and Jaal, who would usually laugh about this in his usual carefree, joyous way, is glaring at him.

“What?” Liam asks, confused. He stares, dumbfounded, as Suvi repeatedly smacks her little fist against her forehead and Gil pinches the bridge of his nose. “ _What_? Does he really need to hear his sister and her boyfriend call each other cute names while going at it?”

A chorus of exasperated, _desperate_ voices rises from the table and Scott’s choked half-snort, half-sob is almost inaudible among the confusion and noise.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm not sure how much longer this fic is gonna be - perhaps two more chapters? We will see!
> 
> Also I chose for my Chloe the default/Sara look! I only changed the name because "Sara" is my little cousin's name and it would have been pretty weird to hear it in the game.


	3. Chapter 3

Dinner proceeds almost normally after that. Liam sits in a corner, pouting at everyone and playing with his food until Drack scolds him – “Kallo and I worked our asses off to make that, kid!” – and after that he pouts even more.

Scott took the blow admirably well and the earbuds are currently inside one of the pockets of his pants, ready for later use. He pretends they aren’t there, but he already knows he will use them _every night_ , hoping the silence won’t cause his poor imagination to run wild.

“How do you guys even use _earbuds_?” Ryder asks Vetra, her voice as low as she can get it, while her brother is distracted by Suvi.

“You mean us poor aliens without visible ears?” The turian clears her throat. “Liam, uh… gave us those fuzzy things you humans call earmuffs.”

“I’m going to die.”

“I’m not joking.”

“That’s why I’m going to die, Vetra.”

“Please, my love.” Jaal whines, looking at her with visible distress. The mere idea of her dying _again_ is enough to upset him beyond measure. “Don’t say such things.”

“Sorry, honey.” Ryder smiles apologetically at him and pats his hand. “It’s just an idiom. Sometimes we humans exaggerate a lot.”

Jaal grunts and scoots closer to her, although he was already glued to her; the sudden motion causes her to bump against Scott, who turns to her, thinking she elbowed him to speak to him.

When he sees that’s not the case and that she is nuzzling Jaal’s cheek, whispering sweet words to him, he sighs and looks back at his plate, shaking his head.

“What?” Drack grins, noticing his reaction. “Too mushy for you, kid?”

“No.” he mumbles, stuffing his mouth with Drack’s Surprise so he won’t have to speak. He _wants to_ , though, so he continues after swallowing hard and clearing his throat: “Maybe. I’m not used to seeing my sister like this.”

Lexi hums and nods; they already talked about this in the medbay, but she doesn’t actually know the true extents of his problem and she wishes to know more to help him better; still, she says nothing, letting him go on.

“Are they… you know…?”

“Virgin? Nah, not anymore.” Drack dismisses the question with a wave of his hand. “Unless they have been making all that noise at night out of nothing.”

“ _Drack!_ ” Lexi hisses, while Suvi, Peebee, and Kallo stare at Scott in horror, expecting him to faint or start sobbing.

He does neither: his face just turns into a too deep shade of red and his eyes twitch a little, but that’s it. He grimaces as if he swallowed a sour bite, then he clears his throat and says, choked up: “That’s… not what I meant.”

“You wanted to know if they are happy, yes?” Suvi timidly intervenes, her tact proving useful in such a delicate situation. “They are, Scott, they really are. Jaal is the sweetest man in the galaxy and your sister is very lucky to have him, just like he’s lucky to have her.”

They know those words are like a double-edged blade; in fact, Scott smiles, a true, warm smile that shows how relieved and happy he is, but then his face falls and he looks down at the food on his plate with something akin to gloomy resignation and fear.

More cannot be said, because Chloe, Jaal, Liam, and Vetra interrupt their discussion about earmuffs and the colorful styles of the pre-space travel-Earth (“We are talking about prehistory here, guys.”) to discover whatever the others – and Scott – are talking about and hopefully have him participate to the conversation.

“Stop boring him with your elaborate culinary descriptions, old man.” Ryder laughs, grinning at Drack, who fortunately doesn’t reveal what the real topic was and just grunts. “Hey, bro, remember those tacky scrunchies Mom found? Those elastic bands for hair that were supposed to be in a museum, but were discarded because they were ‘too exaggerated’?”

“God, of course I remember them.” he chuckles, shaking his head. “They were the most atrocious accessory I ever laid my eyes upon.”

“Scrunchies?” Jaal blurts out before he can stop himself. His curiosity is great, but he now knows Scott would prefer to talk with his sister alone, without hearing his voice, and he wishes to catch his words and put them back into his mouth.

He tenses up and holds his breath, worriedly glancing at Scott, when the human slightly frowns, but then he keeps eating as if he didn’t even hear him.

The tension in the room raises for a moment, until Chloe smiles at her boyfriend and shows him what she’s talking about using her omnitool.

“These, see? Humans can tie their hair in multiple ways, using different stuff. Many centuries ago, people liked to use these hairbands, called scrunchies.”

“Hm!” Jaal smiles, admiring the colors and patterns. “I like them! They are quite cheerful and original.”

A snort comes from where Scott is and the tension reaches unbearable levels. Everyone tenses up; everyone braces themselves or pretends to be busy with food, preparing for the inevitable argument, for Scott’s bitterness followed by Jaal’s pain which will lead to Ryder’s anger, which will cause _Scott’s_ pain and…

“Why are you laughing, brot- Scott?” Jaal asks, without malice, without anger, without suspicion. He is curious, kind, but also worried, because he fears he said something stupid.

Ryder narrows her eyes at her brother, not wanting him to offend her boyfriend, but also not wishing to argue with him, aware of his delicate psychological state.

The crew’s predictions are getting true and they all hold their breath.

“Because you really have no idea how ugly those things are.” Scott replies and now the tension turns into surprise, because he’s smiling amusedly. He is still not looking at his sister or Jaal, but the smile is clearly directed at them.

“They are too big and the colors are too sharp. Chloe’s even had big Earth animals printed on them. They were _atrocious_ to look at.” He giggles and elbows his sister, finally looking at her. “ _She_ was atrocious!”

“Oh, shut up.” she grumbles, playing along and folding her arms. “They were so cute and fluffy! All my classmates at school liked them!”

“I doubt it exists something in the universe capable of making Chloe look bad.” Jaal solemnly says, no doubt in his voice, and she splutters and presses her face against his arm.

“Say that to her old overalls.”

“ _Overalls_?” Cora’s eyes widen, just like her incredulous smile. “Ryder, you did not.”

Ryder’s head immediately snaps up and she babbles, redder than the spicy sauce Drack and Kallo prepared: “I was young and innocent, okay? Back then, Mom was still obsessed with stuff from the XXI century, so she would bring home this… stuff. Really couldn’t do anything about it.”

“Yeah, but you would _wear_ it!” Liam laughs, covering his mouth as he does so because he’s still eating (Drack is still watching him carefully, making sure he empties his plate).

“It… It _was_ cute!” Ryder lamely replies, causing Cora and Liam to laugh harder, much to her chagrin. She pouts and huffs, retreating into Jaal’s arms, and glares at Scott half-heartedly, although she has never been happier to be teased by him.

Does this mean he is already feeling better? Was he so nervous just because of the initial shock, the trauma of finally starting the new life he had dreamed of while getting used to so many new people?

“Show me these overalls.” Jaal murmurs in her ear, a reassuring smile on his lips. He is silently promising her that he won’t laugh and she sighs, nodding.

“Alright. I should have a picture of myself wearing them. Later, in our room, so…”

“That’s not fair! I want to see that too!” Vetra exclaims, promptly followed by Peebee and Kallo, who even tug at each of Ryder’s sleeves.

“It’s too late now! You can’t turn back!”

“Ryder, it’s not like your reputation can get worse than this. Come on!”

“Hell no! This is too embarrassing!” She pulls up her legs and cuddles even further into Jaal’s embrace, glaring at her friends. Gil and Suvi are already whispering to each other, probably coming up with a plan to access her data.

“SAM! If anyone here tries to bribe you…”

“I am incorruptible, Ryder, in any possible way.”

“… or tries to override the security on my files…”

“I won’t allow them to do so.”

“… stop them!”

“Of course, Ryder.”

She doesn’t even see Scott typing something onto his omnitool; she only hears a familiar _ping_ that repeats over and over, until everyone is looking down at their omnitools in surprise. The only one who didn’t receive anything is Chloe herself.

“Wait, _no_.” She watches, horrified, as her friends open up an old picture of her, wearing the most obnoxious and silly overalls ever crafted by the human race.

A moment of silence, in which Scott smiles smugly at her – and he shouldn’t look so satisfied, not with his puffy, rimmed red eyes -, followed by a howl of laughter from Peebee, Suvi and Lexi’s giggles, Drack’s full laughter, and Gil, Vetra, and Kallo’s shocked faces.

Liam and Cora are almost pissing themselves; it’s good to see the biotic lose her composure so much, until her cheeks are glowing red and tears of mirth shimmer in her eyes, but Ryder is slowly starting to regret this and the second bad look she shoots at Scott is totally a 100% true, full enraged glare.

“It’s _pink_.” Vetra murmurs, before snorting and looking away, hiding her fit of giggles behind a hand. “ _Pink_ , Ryder.”

“Are those flowers, sewed on the knees?” Gil looks offended. “Goodness.”

“This material… it was called _jeans_ , right? Man, no wonder this stuff was supposed to be in a museum.”

Drack and Peebee cackle harder, so much the asari even falls on the ground, holding her stomach and flailing to catch her breath. Lexi is doing her best to stop laughing, but every time she catches a glimpse of the picture, she inevitably goes back to giggling, causing Suvi and Kallo to laugh too.

“Scott, I’m going to cut all your hair in your sleep tonight.” Ryder groans, pressing hard her face against her hands, not even wanting to see her brother’s smug grin. Then she gulps and slowly looks at Jaal, who hasn’t said anything.

He is still looking at the picture, a bright smile on his face. He isn’t studying just the overalls, but also Ryder’s young face and her cute pigtails, tied with two colorful ribbons.

 _That_ was a very particular period of her life.

“Close it.” she whines, shaking his arm. “Please, Jaal, I’m going to die of embarrassment here.”

“Why?” He looks surprised, then his expression softens. “Darling One, this picture of you is _lovely_! You still are, of course, gorgeous, magnificent, but you were so even in this picture.”

She blinks, checking out the photo one last time to make sure he’s really looking at the right one.

“… What?”

“What?” Scott says, frowning.

“Damn, kid, are you blind?” Drack chuckles. “You know how much I love Ryder, but you can’t call this _lovely_.”

“It’s endearing in its own way.” Suvi concedes, her lips twitching while Kallo continues to laugh and hides his face under his arms on the table.

“Yes, endearing and sweet! I don’t see anything wrong with this outfit. The flowers are cute and…” He looks at her, eyes shining with love. “I never saw your hair like this. It looked great on you.”

“Uh…” She blushes, her embarrassment leaving space to happiness and surprise. She fidgets, torturing her fingers and nails, and mumbles with a goofy smile: “We call that style _pigtails_. It’s kind of childish, but…”

“I like it! The ribbons are the same color of the flowers too.” He rests his cheek on the top of her head, saying softly: “Never be ashamed of yourself, Darling One, no matter what you used to wear or like. You have no reason to.”

“We could all learn one thing or two from Jaal.” Lexi comments, shaking her head with a fond smile. Drack grunts affirmatively, while Gil and Peebee roll their eyes, but they don’t deny that the mood in the room has changed for the better and everyone suddenly feels kinder and warmer inside.

“Alright, guys, I’m sending everyone romance vids later.” Liam announces, already writing down a few names coming to mind. “Jaal made me crave cheesy feels.”

“You want to experience… feels related to cheese?” the angara frowns. “Isn’t that food?”

“Idiom. It means something overly sweet and kind of cliché.”

“… Cliché?”

“I’ll explain it to you later, honey.” Ryder promises, kissing his cheek. She lowers her voice, adding: “Thank you for saying that, by the way.”

“It is true.” He smiles, holding her hand on the table, but they turn to Scott, a dark feeling settling in their bones, when he scoffs and pushes away his plate.

“Brother…” Jaal starts, sadness creeping in his voice, and the others tense up again, sensing that something is wrong once again.

Ryder starts to doubt: what was Scott trying to do, by sending that picture to her friends and boyfriend? Did he want Jaal to laugh too? Did he want to see whether he would playfully mock her or not? Did he want to scare him, disgust him, and try to make him change his mind about her?

“It’s getting late.” she starts, pushing away her plate as well, hoping the crew will catch the hint and go to bed. A new day will hopefully change things for the better. “We should go to-”

“You don’t believe the sincerity of my words.” Jaal says, still looking at Scott, who refuses to meet his eyes. Ryder is between them and it’s like sitting next to two very different bombs: one that will explode only if triggered in a certain way, after many, many tries, and one that has been ready to explode since from the start, since it entered the ship.

“No, I don’t.” Scott flat-out admits, playing with the crumbs on the table. He’s glaring at them, crushing them under his fingertips. “There is no way you could find that picture _endearing_.”

“Why not? Chloe is my Darling One. I love everything about her. I love her when she is strange, when she says things I don’t understand, when she does things angara don’t usually do.”

Ryder is torn between smiling and giggling - her usual reaction when Jaal compliments her so - and holding her breath and fearing for the worst, knowing Scott won’t be happy.

In fact, he shoots a heated glare at Jaal and narrows his eyes again. It’s like they are resuming their argument in the corridor.

“You sound fake.” Scott says and Jaal takes the blow admirably, but those words affect him all the same and it shows: he flinches, as if punched, and his hand resting on Ryder’s shakes a little.

“Angara rarely lie. We are all very honest about our feelings and emotions.” He looks at Scott with a solemn, serious face. “I would never lie about my relationship with Chloe and my feelings for her.”

“Scott, you don’t know the angara. If you spent even one day with them on Aya, you would see that Jaal is telling the truth.” Ryder reaches for him and touches his shoulder, but her brother shrugs her off.

That also hurts like a punch.

“Scott!” she exclaims and he tightens his lips, knowing he hurt her. His expression softens for a second, then he retreats back into his shell and stands up, excusing himself with a mumble and avoiding any hand that tries to pull him back.

An awkward silence falls in the room, then Lexi speaks up, exhaling slowly: “Ryder, I suggest you to take him out on simple recon missions. He needs to get out and see Heleus, meet its people.”

“I want to take him to Aya.” she says, looking at the door Scott left open. He has retreated back into the crew quarters and she is sure he’s crying again. “I want him to meet the angara.”

“Yes. I agree.” Jaal still looks wounded, but his tone is kind and calm. “This way, he might start liking us more.”

“He’s pretty biased and stubborn, though.” Gil intervenes. “Are you sure that won’t do the opposite? Make him hate you even more?”

“That’s a possibility.” Lexi admits, sipping her water. “However, his bias is caused by something pretty specific. He refused to admit it and I didn’t insist, but it’s clear he’s jealous and scared of you, Jaal.”

“Oh boy.” Liam whispers, suddenly understanding why everybody reacted like that when he brought the earbuds.

“But,” Lexi continues, raising a finger, “I believe that jealousy is caused by his loneliness and fear of the future.”

“Oh, Scott.” Ryder groans and bumps her head against the table, staying still. Jaal’s hand move from hers to her thigh and she makes a tiny sound of appreciation and gratefulness.

“As I said, this will take time. Scott’s problems are creating a complex bundle of feelings in him that he doesn’t quite know how to handle.” Lexi sighs and stands up, a bit of tiredness in her eyes. “Ryder, talk to him. He needs you the most right now.”

Chloe raises her head and nods and while the others stand up and start to clean the table, she turns to Jaal and strokes his cheek.

“I’m sorry.” She traces his scar with her thumb and he closes his eyes, enjoying the sensation. “Your meeting with my family isn’t going like I expected.”

“It will get better. I will help you help Scott.” he promises her, opening his eyes and smiling at her. “I won’t let one of my brothers suffer in silence.”

“Thank you.” She presses a soft kiss on his lips and beams at him. “Go to bed in the meantime. I’ll join you soon.”

Today has been hard for all of them, she thinks, but especially for her brother and Jaal, who has been attacked so many times about his feelings, that she isn’t surprised to see melancholy in his eyes as he gets up and helps Suvi and Kallo put the dishes in the sink.

“Hey.” Ryder whispers to him, before leaving the room. “Try not to fall asleep.”

Jaal blinks, a question in his eyes, and she grins.

“Well, since everyone here has everything they need to have a nice, quiet rest at night, I suppose we can be as loud as we want, Darling One.” she explains, raising her voice so that all their friends can hear.

They groan and someone hits Liam somewhere, because he yelps and complains, swearing he didn’t want things to end up like this.

“Pray that Scott will stay here as a crewmember or we’re gonna hear them shout and moan louder than ever _every night_ just to spite us.” Vetra sighs, causing Liam to curse under his breath.

Jaal’s lips curl into a happy, roguish smile.

“I will wait for you, my love.” he promises and Ryder leaves the room with her heart somewhat lighter and warmer.

If Scott refuses to talk with her or listen to her, at least she and Jaal will still be able to spend a beautiful night together, loving each other and hoping the next day will bring better things.

 

\- - - -

 

Thankfully, it appears Scott is feeling better or at least he manages to stay calm when he is alone with her.

The other members of the crew are still in other parts of the ship, giving Ryder time to talk with her brother, but it’s getting late and they have all been working hard, so she knows she can’t stay too long and steal precious hours of sleep from them.

She will have to be brief, clear, but kind. Straight to the point, without hurting her little bro or making him believe she’s angry at him.

Well, she _is_ , but just a little bit; the anger is partially mitigated by knowing that his reactions and words don’t hide real malice or hatred, just a lot of confusion and fear of the unknown, of this new home that tried to kill him twice and already killed his sister _thrice_.

“Scott?” she calls, stepping closer to his bed. His back is turned to the door, but he slightly moves his head to let her know that he heard her.

“Can I sit there?”

“I don’t know, can you?”

“ _Ugh_.” She takes a chair and drags it close to his bunkbed. “Your jokes are as bad as Dad’s.”

Scott turns to her at that and she can see he has been crying some more. If he keeps doing that, there won’t be a single drop of water left in his body.

“Sis.” he starts, pale fingers clutching the pillow. He looks younger, too young, and she remembers when he used to have a lot of nightmares about school and she would run to call Mom and Dad to calm him down.

He used to watch her with those same eyes – “Sis, I’m scared.” -, but Dad isn’t here anymore and Mom cannot be awakened.

It’s just them now, he thinks, but she knows that’s not right: there is a whole ship ready to support him and he can’t see that. Or he probably doesn’t want to.

“Are you really happy with Jaal?” he asks, watching her intently. “Like, _really_ happy? He doesn’t act like boyfriends usually act. At least, not like the human ones you see in the vids.”

“I am, Scott. I really am.” She takes his hand and finds it to be alarmingly cold. She rubs it, also hoping to reassure him and calm him down that way. “I’m the happiest woman in the galaxy.”

He looks content and relieved, but at the same time he doesn’t. He lets out a shaky sigh and looks away, tears filling his eyes.

“Scott.” she starts, moving the chair to sit closer to him. “You are still my little brother. You will always be.”

“He is so _open_.” he mumbles, ignoring her. He glances at her, frowning. “Doesn’t it bother you? Doesn’t it sound fake to you?”

“No.” she smiles, patting his hand. “That’s how all angara are. And Jaal is even more extroverted than most of them, when it comes to his feelings for me.”

“God.” Scott stares down at the floor. “He talks like you two are married.” He gasps and gawks at her, paling. “Wait, you two _aren’t_ married, right?”

“Not yet.” she giggles. There is a clear meaning behind her words, one she put there on purpose, and Scott doesn’t miss it. He is getting agitated and there are many questions swirling in his head, she can tell it from his eyes.

“I met his family.” she continues, knowing he needs to know this, that he needs to accept how serious things are between her and Jaal. He might be jealous, but Lexi confirmed it’s a type of jealousy with no real roots, with no real anger behind it.

He just doesn’t want to remain alone, to be left behind.

“His family?” he repeats with a small voice and she nods, smiling all the time.

“His true mother, Sahuna, and his siblings and relatives. They are all wonderful people, especially Sahuna.” She thinks of all the cute, sweet emails she sends her and she beams at her brother. “She was so happy to hear you were feeling well again! She wants to meet you as soon as possible, but…”

She sighs and squeezes his hand, happy to see he’s not shaking anymore, even though he still looks shaken.

“But that can wait. Now you need to get better _inside_. Your body has recovered, your mind and soul will do the same soon.”

“Wow, that was deep.” he chuckles, a wet, but boyish sound. “Look at you, all wise and strong. Meanwhile I’m here, crying like a baby after offending your boyfriend multiple times like an ass.”

“Don’t worry. If he had really been offended, he would have punched you.”

Scott stares at her with big, incredulous eyes and she laughs, nodding.

“It’s true! Angara are like that. They talk about their feelings, they _show_ how they feel all the time, and this is why it’s so easy and great to be in their company. At least, once you get used to it. It can be hard for those who come from the Milky Way, at first.”

“I… I met some angara before meeting with Jaal.” Scott reveals and Chloe nods again, not surprised by it one bit. She was suspecting something like that, in fact. “Two were on Meridian, the others on the Nexus. I…” He shakes his head. “I made a terrible impression. I could barely talk and I was scared of fucking everything up.”

He curls up on the bed, partially hiding his face against the pillow, but his grip on Chloe’s hand is iron-like.

“I don’t understand. They were not the first aliens of my life, I mean… we grew up on the Citadel, we’ve been surrounded by aliens since birth!”

“First contacts are always like that, Scott. I was nervous as hell too when I first met the angara.” She rubs her thumb on his knuckles, so different from hers, which are rough and scarred after months of battles and fights in dangerous, cold, hot, sulfuric places.

“Also, you know what? I think that already having access to information about the angara was a disadvantage for you. You thought you knew everything about them, that you knew what to say and do, but when you actually met them, you forgot everything because _it_ _just wasn’t the same as_ _reading_ and there were so many things that could go wrong.”

“Shit, sis.” Scott stares at her like a second head grew on her shoulders. “You are getting _too_ wise now.”

She laughs and he chuckles again, but the sound ends with a sad, heavy sigh.

“How did you do it? How did you create an alliance like this in so little time with such a new, mysterious alien species?”

She thinks about that, but the only answer that comes to mind is ‘luck’, although she knows that isn’t right. She definitely had good luck, no doubt about that, but…

“The angara are good people.” she replies and that makes Scott look back at her with curious eyes. He’s interested. “Good, selfless people who only want to save their worlds and families. It was hard at first and it took us all a while, but we did it. We finally trusted each other and in the end, we prevailed over the kett.”

“Yes, but how did you win their trust? How did you convince them you weren’t helping them just because you wanted to betray them later? After their experiences with the kett, they must have suspected that at least once.”

“Of course.” She smiles at him, shaking her head. Her brother has always been kind of dense about certain things. The answers might be there, right in front of his eyes, and he wouldn’t see them, too busy being stubborn or thinking they must hide somewhere else, too complex for him to find them so easily.

“But the Initiative did something the kett never did. We started _sharing_ things with the angara. We asked them questions, but we also answered theirs and told them everything they wanted to know about us. We showed them we knew we were the strangers here and that this is their home.”

_This place is great! I’m learning a great deal._

She giggles, remembering the first time Jaal told her that, happy like a child. Scott raises an eyebrow and she hurries to explain: “Did you see the Cultural Center? Did you see how many angara visit it? That’s one of their favorite places on the Nexus and they always thank us for the information they can find there.”

She opens her omnitool, types a few words in, and shows Scott a picture of the Initiative Embassy on Aya.

“They let us enter one of their most important cities so that we could learn more from each other. They let us see relics of their past and we gave them relics of our old home. There is a section of their museum dedicated to us, you know?”

Scott’s eyes widen and he raises a finger, swiping it across the picture of the Embassy to see the next one: these photos are new to him, he never saw them before, and he studies every detail, counts every figure, admires every symbol and flower of Aya he sees.

“We built this alliance thanks to our mutual efforts.” Chloe concludes softly. “One step at a time. We learned more about each other, we shared thoughts, experiences, knowledge, emotions and we became friends. You cannot build trust without sharing, Scott.”

He nods and asks in a murmur, sounding almost timid: “Is that how you and Jaal got together? Slowly, but steadily, sharing emotions and memories?”

“Yes.” Her heart starts beating faster just thinking about him and the early days of their friendship, followed by their awkward flirting, which culminated with his declaration of love at his family house. He shared his most cherished treasures with her that day.

_I don’t show people these things._

_Let me show you one more thing you might like. Lie down._

She takes a deep breath, but the blush on her cheeks is so bright, so burning hot, she’s sure it can be seen from outer space.

Scott smiles at her, in that sad and amused way that is so baffling to see.

“I guess it was a pretty sweet _ride_ , huh?”

“Oh, stop it.” she chides him, swatting his hand. At least he’s willing to make puns about her and Jaal now. He lets out a short laugh, then looks at the ceiling, his eyes not really settling on a specific point.

“I was so excited to see Heleus and meet the angara.” he murmurs. “But then I ruined everything and now I can’t stop crying. Everything scares me, everything hides dangers.”

He turns to her, eyes filled with heavy, hot tears, lips and hands shaking again, breath ragged.

“What if…” he starts, babbling. “What if I won’t get better? What if the Archon or the Remnant tech ruined me and I will never stop being scared?”

He grips his sister’s hand and she squeezes it, until their knuckles and nails are white. His tears begin to run down his cheeks and he sniffles.

“What if you will have to leave me behind? What if I will never accomplish anything and I will disappoint everyone?” He makes a low, keening noise and presses his face against the pillow not to let her hear. “I… I will never be like you or Dad.”

“Oh, Scott.” She hugs him, putting all her strength into it to let him know she is there for him, but controlling it so that he won’t be hurt.

Jaal taught her that and the same counts for the angara’s electric abilities; they express their emotions to the maximum, but at the same time they know how to dose them, so nobody will get hurt.

It says so much about them as a people and Scott seems to recognize the difference in the hug, so unlike the silly ones they used to share in the Milky Way, different from Dad’s, which were usually one-sided and goofy, and from Mom’s, warm but too brief.

He sobs against her shoulder, clinging to her like that time when they found out Mom was going to die, and Chloe cries a little with him, rubbing his back and swaying sideways to lull him.

That seems to work, because he stops crying sooner than she expected and slowly falls back onto the bed with just a short series of hiccups and two very puffy eyes.

“Those must sting.” she says, nodding at them, and he nods, cleaning his nose on his sleeve, much to her disgust.

“Ew, Scott! Use a tissue!”

“I don’t have one.” he weakly replies, doing it again, and she huffs, rummaging into her pockets and giving him her clean handkerchief.

“Here! Even if you don’t deserve it, after showing that picture of me to everyone.”

“Jaal is right, you were _kind of_ cute.” He pretends to shiver. “Those pigtails, though.”

“They were _adorable_.”

He blows his nose on the handkerchief, giving her a pointed look, and only then he notices a bright pink, elegant “Chloe” sewn onto it.

“Since when you have a customized handkerchief?” he snorts, handing it back to her. She takes it with a grimace and folds it accurately, making sure not to touch the snot.

“Jaal sewed it for me. One day, he asked me how my name was written in our alphabet and I showed it to him. One hour later he gave me this.”

“That’s sweet.” Scott admits with a sniff. He looks at her with the most sheepish expression she ever saw on a human face. “I’m… I’m sorry, sis, I really am. I didn’t mean to treat him like that. I know he’s a cool guy and now that you assured me you are happy with him, I…”

“It’s okay. He knows what you went through. And as for what you said before…” She rests her hand on his and smiles. “You don’t have to worry about that, Scott. I know you will get better soon and even if you won’t, we will never leave you behind. You will never disappoint me or anyone else.”

She brushes back his hair, like Mom used to do before giving them her goodnight kiss. “You don’t have to become like me or Dad. _I_ am not like Dad. We just have to be… us. Understood?”

He makes a tiny, timid affirmative sound, but for today that’s enough. He looks drained, sleepy as hell, and she convinces him to get under the covers to finally get some well-deserved rest.

“Do… do you think we can visit Aya tomorrow?” He asks bashfully, his voice partially muffled by the blanket he has pulled up to his mouth. “I mean, what better way to get used to all this than visit their homeworld?”

Chloe beams at him, happy that he suggested that first. Despite what Lexi and Gil said, Aya might truly be the best starting point for her brother: it’s gorgeous, calm, but lively, and he will be able to see how angara spend their time and fight for those they love.

“Of course. SAM, set the route for Aya and leave a message for Kallo. We can travel during the night, so we will be already there when we wake up.”

“Yes, Pathfinder.”

“Thanks, sis. I… I want this to work. I want to get better and not cause you any trouble with…” Scott hesitates. “With your new family.”

“It’s _your_ new family too, bro.” She shakes his shoulder, smiling. “They have already accepted you.”

He frowns, confused by all that kindness once again.

“Even if they never met me?”

“Yes, even so.”

He whines, but his cheeks have finally regained some color.

“I’d like to meet Sahuna.” he admits. “Is she a cool mom?”

Chloe remembers their first meeting and her first emails, how kind and supportive she was, how she complimented her son in front of her as if to say _‘my boy is the best and he loves you so much, please give him a chance!’_.

She remembers all their calls and the emails that followed the exploration of Khi Tasira and the victory on Meridian, Sahuna’s excitement for the future that rivaled Jaal’s, her gratefulness directed at Chloe for loving her son so much, her words of encouragement.

She grins, remembering when she, the other mothers, and Jaal’s siblings came to Meridian to visit it, a large crowd of angara that surrounded her and asked her questions, touched her hair, thanked her, shook her hands.

Sahuna brought a pie for her: she made it using all the Earth recipes she could find and fruits typical of Havarl. The pungent, strong, but pleasant taste is still vivid on Chloe’s tongue, every time she recalls it.

 _“Is it good, dear?”_ Sahuna asked, fidgeting just like her son, but she also reminded her of Ellen, the way she stood next to the table whenever she tried a new recipe.

_“Is it good, Alec? Kids?”_

_“It’s great, mom.”_

She said that to Sahuna too – _she called her ‘mom’_ \- and the woman’s smile was so big it filled her entire face. Even her eyes looked bigger and Chloe blushed so hard after realizing what she had said, but she didn’t take it back and chuckled, embarrassed and happy at the same time, getting back to her slice of pie.

Jaal, next to her, beamed at his family, proud and overjoyed.

She snaps out of it when her brother laughs softly, a knowing smile on his lips.

“She is that cool?”

“Yes.” She smiles back. “She is the coolest. I’ll introduce you to her soon, I promise.”

She fixes his blanket and pillow, then decides it’s time to go and let the others have their sleep too.

“Did you wash your teeth?”

“Yes.”

“Liar. Do you want one of Vetra’s stuffed toys? I’m sure she won’t mind.”

“Mh.” He pretends to think hard about it, eyes closed, a small line on his brow, then he opens one eye and smiles at his smirking sister. “Eh. Not today, thanks.”

Chloe chuckles and ruffles his hair before getting up and putting the chair back where she found it. She goes to the door, opening it, but before leaving the room she turns to her brother and waves at him.

“Tell Jaal that I’m sorry.” he says, suddenly serious. “I will tell him myself tomorrow, but I want him to know now too.”

“Alright. Leave it to me.”

“Oh! Before I forget…” He takes out the earbuds Liam gave him and puts each into his ears, grinning at his sister. “Wouldn’t want to get even more traumatized.”

She swears, fleeing the room, and her brother’s genuinely cheerful laughter follows her in the corridor, making her smile.

She doesn’t see him pull out his omnitool and look for an angaran dictionary, one of the few things he never read in detail before.

 

\- - - -

 

Jaal is waiting for her in their bed like he promised.

“Hello, my Darling One.”

He is also completely _naked_ and Chloe freezes on the doorstep for a second, before hurrying to rush in and get to him.

Jaal laughs, opening wide his arms to welcome her, and she jumps into his embrace, enjoying the light sparks of electricity he sends through her skin.

“You are always so warm.” she hums, nuzzling his neck, smiling when he runs a hand through her hair and inhales deeply her scent.

“And you are always so perfect, my light.” He plays with her ponytail, letting her hair fall on the palm of his hand and then twirling it around his finger. His other hand is on the small of her back, pressing her body flush against his.

“How did it go?” he asks, kissing her nose, trepidation and anxiety on his face. She smiles, running her hands across his chest, touching every crevice and angle and protruding bone she knows so well now.

“It went well. Scott apologizes for what he said and he wants you to know that he’s sorry.” She presses her lips on his scarred cheek and adds, grinning: “He also wants to meet Sahuna!”

“Darling One!” Jaal laughs triumphantly and falls back onto the mattress, taking her with him. He rolls them over, so he can settle above her, and she wraps her legs around his waist.

“Also, we’ve set a course for Aya. We are heading there right now.” she says, peppering his face with kisses. Apparently, they didn’t have to wait the next day for the good news to arrive.

“I’m so relieved.” he sighs, resting his forehead on hers. “I want our families to be happy together, Chloe.”

“They will. Scott isn’t really angry at you or jealous, he’s just scared.” She cups his face in her hands and looks into his starry eyes, more beautiful than the space outside. She giggles and he looks at her quizzically, a smile tugging at the corner of his lips.

“You know, he asked me if we were married.”

“Well…” Jaal chuckles, blushing – _she can see it now_. “Not yet.”

They smile at each other, never breaking eye contact, and Jaal’s smile hides hope and that same shyness he had in his eyes when he asked her to be together. She brushes a finger down his nose, until she reaches his chin, stopping there.

“Yes. Not yet.” Her cheeks are burning too and her smile is wide and excited; Jaal’s breath hitches in his throat and then he grins, just like he grinned that day on Aya, when he spun her around in the lake.

He descends on her and kisses her just like that day, deeply, without holding back, showing all his love for her like he does with his hugs and electrical sparks.

“ _Taoshay_ …” she breathes, eyes half-closed; Jaal’s hands are caressing her breasts and thighs through her clothes and she runs hers down his head, touching the crevices, ridges, and the flaps on his neck in that way that always makes him groan in pleasure.

Without any input, SAM turns the lights off and locks the door; Chloe hears the click and smiles, thanking the AI in her head, then helps Jaal with her clothes.

Once she is completely naked like he is, he goes back between her legs and they kiss each other slowly, meticulously, savoring each kiss and each breath, playing with each other’s lips and tongue.

Jaal kisses her chest, right above her heart, then he takes care of her breasts, which he now knows so well, while she touches that soft spot of his neck that causes him to moan and release more electrical energy.

“Come here.” she says, wishing to kiss him again, and he understands what she wants, immediately pressing his lips against hers.

“ _Taoshay_.” he calls her in return, thumbs stroking her cheeks, and they smile, their hearts beating in unison, a harmony of sounds singing under the stars.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next chapter: Aya, Evfra's face when he sees there is another Ryder, and maybe Sahuna and the rest of Jaal's family :D
> 
> Also [these are Chloe's scrunchies](https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/originals/3f/2c/12/3f2c120a9eb1370408e9aa7c6f86ba0a.jpg), the most decadent and colorful accessories you can imagine. (I used to wear those a lot when I was a kid ;_; )
> 
> I don't know if I mentioned it before, but English is not my native language, so I apologize for any typos or mistake in this chapter and in the previous ones!


	4. Chapter 4

“Ryder,” SAM’s voice says, interrupting her dreams, “it is 0800 and Kallo wants you to know we have arrived at destination.”

She groans, rolling on her back; it’s a bit difficult, considering Jaal’s limbs are practically glued to her body and his embrace is so tight she can barely move.

He is snoring against her hair: if the sound was at first disconcerting and a bit deafening, now she can’t sleep without hearing it.

He even talks in his sleep sometimes, like the Moshae told her: random mumblings that don’t really make sense, but sometimes he also pronounces her name and calls her or asks her silly questions.

She actually writes them down whenever she hears them and later shows them to him; some make sense and reveal his interest for topics he must have thought about for a long time, but didn’t find the time or willpower to ask her directly.

Others are… special.

The silliest one was probably _“did you ever cry watching a vid?”_. She showed him which movies had made her bawl her eyes out in the past and she promised they would watch them all together.

The sweetest one was _“how can I ask you to marry me without offending you?”_

She didn’t tell him about that one, but she holds it dear in her heart, waiting for the day when he will find out the answer for himself and act.

Today he isn’t talking, just snoring and snorting, but he refuses to let her go when she tries to get off the bed.

“Thank you, SAM.” she whispers, not wanting to wake him up abruptly. “Are the others awake?”

“Kallo and Gil worked for most of the night as usual.” the AI says. “Cora and Suvi are on the bridge, Drack and Peebee are eating breakfast in the galley, Liam and Vetra are in the cargo bay, Scott and Lexi in the med bay.” A pause, then he adds slowly: “My responses tend to slow down when I use the crew’s first names, but you are right. It feels more familiar, this way.”

“Of course it does.” she smiles affectionately. “You can’t keep calling your family with their second names, SAM.”

“I agree. I noticed a change in their behavior too. Liam and Peebee call me Sammy sometimes.”

“If you start giving us nicknames too, I’m sure Dad will shed tears of happiness from up there.”

“I’m not sure my humor algorithms have developed so much. Playful nicknames depend on one’s talent to find amusing or endearing characteristics in another person’s appearance or personality and turn them into a funny, inoffensive name.”

Chloe manages to sit up, although Jaal’s arms and legs instinctively tighten around her, anchoring her to the bed. She starts caressing the arm draped over her stomach, watching intently the holographic figure of the AI on her desk.

“SAM, I doubt you could ever offend us.” She grins, even bouncing a little. “Come on, try it with me! What nickname would you give me?”

She never thought she would have a conversation about nicknames with an AI while in bed with her alien boyfriend, in their comfy room illuminated only by the stars outside.

For a second, it all reminds her of those _vaporwave_ songs she and Scott always listened to while studying.

If SAM could stutter, he would probably do it right now. Instead, he just stays quiet longer than usual and then he says, very slowly: “I’d call you Static.”

“Well.” She blinks, then frowns, thinking about the reason behind such a choice. “That’s original. Why would you call me like that? Jaal is the one with the electromagnetic abilities.”

“That’s right.”

She scratches her head, not really sure she understands, and then _she does_.

Her hair. Like every morning, it’s sticking out in all directions, thanks to Jaal’s electric waves she constantly sleeps next to.

“ _Oh!_ ” She beams at SAM’s round figure, hoping he can sense her pride. “SAM! That was a cool joke!”

“Thank you, Ryder.” SAM sounds almost smug and even a little bit flattered, but maybe it’s just her imagination. “I still need some time to think about good nicknames for the rest of the crew.”

“Please, do. I want to hear the one for Jaal.” Speaking of him, he’s still snoring like there is no tomorrow. His arm moved and his hand is now on her belly, warm and broad.

“Come on, honey.” she whispers, kissing his cheek while trying to get untangled. “It’s time to wake up.”

But he looks way too content and adorable, so she decides to let him sleep a little more. She manages to get out of bed and find her clothes they threw on the floor the night before.

Her breasts and the space between her legs still ache in that pleasant, soft way that speaks of how delicate and gentle Jaal is. She dresses slowly, blushing while she thinks about last night, Jaal thrusting into her and moaning words of love in her ear as she gasped and called his name.

She is about to tie her hair in the usual ponytail, the one she makes without even using an elastic band or ribbon, but then she changes her mind and lets it flow down her shoulders. They are not going into battle today, so she can keep it free for once.

She isn’t used to the feeling and it’s weird to look down and see the brown curtain follow the movement of her head and even block her line of vision. But Jaal _loves_ her hair and she saw his face when he looked at that old picture of her with the pigtails.

“SAM, do you think I would look good with a different hairstyle?” She rubs her neck, suddenly self-conscious. “When I don’t have to fight, I mean. It would be nice to change it once in a while, at least here on the Tempest or on the Nexus.”

“I’m not an expert about human hairstyles and my opinion wouldn’t be much helpful.” SAM gently replies. “I suppose Alec never thought such knowledge would benefit me and our work.”

“Yeah, of course.” She looks at the mirror that popped up on the console of the wardrobe when she approached it.

She brushes two locks of hair fallen near her eyes with her fingers, staring critically at her reflection, then she takes a red hairclip shaped like a star and ties those locks behind her head: this way her hair is still let loose, but she managed to style it in a more tidied up way.

To be honest, she never felt _beautiful_. When she was little, some human kids at her school used to mock her looks, saying her nose was too big and her lips too full, and those comments stuck with her ever since.

Letting her hair frame her face like this would highlight all those flaws, she thinks, but she also admits she looks older and more sophisticated this way, almost elegant, sort of like Mom was.

_You are more lovely than anyone I have ever known, in body and in spirit._

If Jaal told her that, it must be true, so she believes him and goes for it, brushing the tip of her hair with the comb one last time before going back to the bed and kissing his cheek.

He makes her feel gorgeous every day and she almost doesn’t know how to show the full extent of her gratefulness.

“SAM, please, wake him up in… let’s say, five minutes.”

“Of course.”

She smiles at her boyfriend, then at her reflection in the mirror and moves to leave her room.

Before she steps into the corridor, SAM says: “That hairstyle suits you, Chloe.”

She laughs and smiles at AI, nodding.

“Thank you, SAM.”

 

There is no time for a shower, so she goes straight to the galley to eat something and make sure Jaal’s favorite nutrient paste is still there and hasn’t been entirely used by Suvi for her weird culinary experiments.

“Who the hell are you?” Drack’s amused voice asks her as soon as she enters, the krogan’s eyes quick and attentive as always. Peebee, busy munching some of those dry cookies she likes so much, is slower, but when she finally raises her head and sees Ryder through bleary eyes, she gasps.

“By the Goddess!” she exclaims, in a fake high-pitched voice. “Ryder! You look so cute!”

“She’s right, kid. You look great.”

“Aw, thanks.” she laughs, fidgeting on the spot. She wonders if make-up would be too much, but then she changes her mind. It has never really been her strong suit and she doesn’t want to ruin this humble, but decent result by painting her poor face clumsily.

“Jaal won’t stop touching it for the whole day.” the asari cackles, wiggling her eyebrows, then she gasps again, an idea forming in her restless mind: “Oh! Remember your pigtails? I saw a human wear them differently once! She kept them on the front, not the back, though.”

“Yeah?” Ryder opens the pantry and sees that the paste is still there, much to her relief. She starts preparing a bowl of it, while Peebee continues excitedly: “Yes and it was cute! Actually, now that I think about it, it reminds me of the neck flaps angara have.”

She can’t see it because her back is turned to the table, but Ryder can definitely hear her sly tone as the asari concludes: “Why don’t you style your hair like that, the next time? I’m sure Jaal will love it.”

“It would give him an instant boner.” Drack comments dryly and Chloe’s cheeks turn beetle red.

“I… I will think about it.” she babbles, doing her best to ignore – or at least erase from her memory – Peebee’s next words: “Using hair during sex, huh… I wonder how _that_ feels like.”

“Kid.” Drack grunts. “Please. I’m eating.”

“Thanks for the chat, guys!” Ryder exclaims, voice cracking, and she flees the room, a bowl of paste in her hand and one of cereal in the other. She forgot the milk, but she doesn’t really want to go back into the galley to retrieve it, not with Peebee describing in detail how cool a _hairjob_ would be like.

She lets out a long, relieved sigh once she is back into her quarters. Like she asked him to, SAM has called Jaal, who is stirring and moving in bed, but still refuses to completely wake up.

“Let’s give him more time.” she giggles, placing his bowl of paste on the small table, before sitting on the bed and eating her milk-less cereals. It’s almost heretical and her mind can’t comprehend exactly what she’s putting into her mouth, but it will have to do for today.

Jaal seems to sense her presence, because his arms immediately look for her body; once he finds her, he smiles contently, eyes still closed, and nuzzles her thigh.

“Come on, sleepyhead.” she says, poking his forehead with her spoon. “It’s time to get up.”

“Five more minutes.” he mumbles, his voice deeper and hoarser than usual. It does things to her groin, but she fights the urge to undress completely and join him back under the covers.

A part of her cannot wait for him to wake up and see his reaction; another is scared and timid, but she knows he loves her no matter what. He told her so yesterday too.

To be honest, they always tell each other how much they love each other, almost every day. Liam once said they are the couple with the highest level of PDA he ever saw.

“Alright, only five more minutes.” She leans down and kisses his cheek, holding back a giggle when her hair tingles his face and he scrunches up his nose.

He is still too sleepy to open his eyes, but his hand on her legs refuse to move when she tries to get up after finishing her breakfast.

“Come on!” she laughs, poking him with the spoon again. “Eat your food and join us on the bridge. We’ve arrived on Aya.”

He hums affirmatively, but whines sadly when she frees herself from his hold and leaves the room again, her laughter making him smile into the pillow.

On her way to the bridge, she meets Scott and Lexi: her brother’s eyes are less red today and he clearly took a long, hot shower, because he looks refreshed and his cheeks are finally pinkish.

“Oh, how cute!” Lexi exclaims as soon as she sees her. “I wonder what caused this sudden change in style…?”

“She _never_ braided her hair like that before!” Scott gasps, pretending to be shocked. He even puts a hand on his chest and takes a staggering step backwards, as if hit. “Sis! What’s gotten into you?”

“Come on, I just wanted to try something new.” she grumbles, blushing, and glaring at the smiling asari and her silly brother. “It’s not that bad, is it?”

“No, of course not. You look really pretty.” Lexi reassures her, although she is _definitely_ going to write this in her next psychological report.

“Yeah, it’s pretty good.” Scott’s smile softens and it becomes a little melancholic, but also very sweet. “You remind me of Mom.”

Then, before she can react and hug him, he turns smartass again and grins cheekily: “I’m sure Jaal will have fun touching it.”

Chloe huffs, redder than her shirt, but seeing her brother like this is a balsam for the soul. Maybe a good night of rest really did miracles or maybe he’s just really excited of finally setting foot on a new planet.

 _Frustration_. That’s what SAM felt when he was briefly connected to Scott. At least, that’s what he told her and that detail has always been carefully stored in a corner of her mind, a painful reminder of what her brother went through, even before leaving the Milky Way.

It seems a part of that frustration is finally leaving him, transformed into relief, excitement, healthy curiosity. If everything goes right, then he and Jaal will be finally able to develop a beautiful friendship.

She wonders if he will ever call him “brother” like Jaal does. Scott can be pretty awkward with new people, even more than Dad was, and it might take him a while to get used to let himself go when around Jaal, but there is time and they are in no hurry.

At least, not until Sahuna will learn that he is finally back on his feet.

“I saw Aya from the windows. It looks great!” Yeah, that’s definitely impatience and curiosity. He is grinning more than he ever grinned before. “I read some info about it, but the Initiative doesn’t say much about it.”

“Yes, we don’t want to risk the kett learning too much from our communications, should they ever start to spy on us.” Chloe sighs, shaking her head. She admits that’s always been a big fear of hers: accidentally leading the kett right to the angara’s most important planet.

Fortunately, that has never happened and both the Initiative and the government on Aya have taken even more extreme measures to ensure only the minimal and most protected information would be transmitted; also, confused and lost as the kett are now after the Archon’s death, she doubts they have the resources and time to try anything reckless like diving through the Scourge.

“I want to visit the museum. And the Embassy. Oh, and the _tavetaan_!”

“Wow, you remembered the name.” Ryder chuckles, heading with him to the bridge, and he grins at her from above his shoulder as he climbs the ladder.

“I’ve had my fair amount of free time, remember? Ugh, sis, you really need to install a lift here. My back can’t take this ladder.”

“And where would you put a lift _here_? Come on, move your ass!”

Despite his complaining, Scott rushes to the bridge, happy like a child, and Suvi shares his excitement, listing to him all the flowers and cool rocks she found on Aya.

“There is this plant, the _tavarv_ , and I tried following an angaran recipe to prepare snacks with it, but…”

“Let’s just say they weren’t good.” Kallo flatly adds from his seat, earning himself an angry pout from Suvi. He is the only one who can bear to see her like that without feeling bad.

“How rude! Jaal said they were good!”

“Of course he did.” Scott chuckles and Chloe, behind him, braces for a bitter joke or an annoyed comment.

But that never comes. Her brother shakes his head at Suvi and says matter-of-factly: “He is an angara. His taste-buds can appreciate that kind of food.”

There, nice and simple, the most practical statement in the world, pronounced without any snarky remark.

“See?” Kallo exclaims, pointing at him. “He gets it! He is the third one, after me and Cora, to tell you that!”

“Ryder tasted an angaran pie.” Suvi mumbles, her pout reaching the “trembling lower lip” stage. “She said it was excellent. Isn’t that true, Ryder- oh!”

She and Kallo see her only now and they both beam at her and her new hairstyle. Suvi even gets up to go near her and admire the red star-shaped hairpin.

“Ryder, you look so good! It’s so nice to see you like this!”

“A simple, but elegant look.” Kallo agrees, before smirking playfully. “Addison might treat you better, if you styled your hair like this all the time.”

“Oh God, no. I can’t let the people on the Nexus see me like this. I have a reputation to defend.” she jokes, but a part of her knows that she will have to look the part in the years to come.

 _‘Tight shirts and boring shoes, here I come.’_ she thinks wearily, but the thought of Aya manages to make her feel instantly better.

That place brings so many good memories and the lake where Jaal brought her has truly become her favorite place in the universe. That day was so _perfect_ and she can still taste the sweetness of the water on his lips or feel the timid touch of his broad hand between her legs.

( _“Like this…?”_

_“Yes... Just like that, I think.”_

_“You are…”_ he chuckled, face flushed, in awe. _“Very soft.”_

 _“And you are…”_ she giggled, reaching for the length between his legs. _“Very hard.”_ )

“Uh-oh, dreamy eyes again! She must be thinking about Jaal.”

Her brother’s voice reaches her ears and brain and she snaps out of it, staring at Scott’s smug grin.

“I…”

“Red cheeks, too.” Kallo sighs dramatically, shaking his head. “Must be something sweet.”

“Don’t you have a ship to fly?” she grumbles, suddenly happy to be able to cover her face with her hair. “Scott, stop laughing, or I will force you to meet Evfra.”

“Who?” A hint of panic _does_ appear in his eyes – and Chloe feels bad for that -, but he’s also so thrilled to finally visit new places that the idea of meeting more angara, new _people_ , doesn’t scare him anymore. In fact, he looks curious about that too.

“Evfra, the leader of the angaran Resistance. He helped us on Meridian too, but I doubt you saw him.”

“My brain was kinda fried in that moment, sis.” He hesitates, playing with his sleeve, eyes focused on Aya, which is getting closer by the minute as Kallo pilots the ship.

“Do you think I could meet the Moshae? She sounds interesting.”

“As soon as we land on Aya and she hears about you, she will _expect_ you to go to her office.” she chuckles, before grimacing. “Sorry. It’s just that she is an expert about Remnants and she will want to hear what happened exactly on Meridian.”

“Oh boy, she’s gonna be so disappointed.” Scott laughs nervously, but he calms down when his sister pats his shoulder and says, smiling: “Don’t worry, she is also very kind and I’m sure she will understand. I’ll come with you too.”

“No! I mean, thanks, but…” He swallows, looking at the clouds now surrounding the ship as they fly towards the LZ. “I want to do this alone. I want to get used to all this by myself.”

“Scott…” she sighs, eyeing him worriedly. “Don’t strain yourself. You know you can ask for help, right?”

“Yes, yes! And I will ask for it, if I need it, I swear it. It’s just…”

“Chloe.” SAM intervenes on their private channel. “I believe Scott wishes to experience this by himself. Landing on Aya and exploring it will be his turning point, just like it was for you.”

“Oh.”

_I… I will never be like you or Dad._

SAM is right. Scott needs to feel ready, useful, professional. If she and Jaal accompanied him around like two babysitters, he would probably feel like a child and it would probably hinder his experience with the angara.

“SAM, you are getting wiser than me.” she jokes, using the private channel, and the AI replies a millisecond after: “I’m flattered.”

“Alright, then.” she tells Scott, who beams at her. “Go have fun. You will probably meet Drack and Liam at the _tavetaan_ , so don’t get too drunk.”

“Psychologically prepare yourself for the food, man.” Liam’s voice says behind them. “Angaran paste is the… shit, who replaced our Pathfinder with this new girl?”

“Ha ha.” She glares at the grinning man, folding her arms. “Yours was the rudest reaction, by the way.”

“What, are you writing them down? I’m sure Gil made a smartass comment.”

“He didn’t see me yet.”

“Hey, Gil!” Scott opens the comms, dodging his sister’s hand before she can swat him. “Did you see Chloe’s new hairstyle?”

“What?” the engineer sounds flabbergasted, then he pauses. “Please, tell me it’s _pigtails_.”

“Shut up and help Kallo pilot the ship.” she huffs, starting to regret her choice, but she knows Scott is just joking – probably to feel better and avoid thinking too much about _his_ First Contact experience – and she still can’t wait for Jaal to see her and…

The door of the bridge opens and she doesn’t turn around at the speed of light, absolutely, she is ready to swear it in front of Tann and the rest of the leaders. She just _moved very quickly_ , clearly alerted by the sound that isn’t absolutely familiar after all the time spent on the ship.

Nobody believes that, of course, judging by Liam’s snickers and Suvi’s giggles, but her initial embarrassment goes away when Jaal enters the room, perfect and perfumed as always.

His eyes immediately settle on her, recognizing her face among the others, and then they widen beyond measure. They are already pretty big, like all angara’s, but now they are practically filling his entire face.

He walks over to Ryder in two fast strides and stops just a few inches from her, staring at her like she is the most wondrous of creatures, the birthplace of creation, the answer to all questions, a stars-filled deity riding a _yevara_ in the sky.

“Incoming boner!” Drack announces with his unmistakable belly laugh and Chloe splutters, hiding half of her face behind a hand, trying to ignore Liam’s louder snickers and her brother’s amused snort.

Jaal successfully ignores them as if they even aren’t on his same plane of existence. He keeps looking at Chloe, eyes big and full of nebulas, and his hands at his sides twitch, yearning for contact.

“Do you like it?” she asks, fidgeting, feeling like a teenager on her first date wearing her best frilly dress. “I… I wanted to try something different today.”

He doesn’t reply, but he’s blushing _a lot_ and she suspects some of that blood is flowing down like Drack said.

“You can touch it, you know.” she giggles, raising an eyebrow at him. Jaal has always been fascinated by her hair, but she usually lets it down only in bed.

He touches it and kisses it before and after making love or before falling asleep; when on the Tempest or while taking a break somewhere while on mission, he twirls her ponytail around his index finger or brushes back her bangs, sweet gestures of love shared while modding weapons, eating, or waiting for a shuttle to arrive.

To see her hair like this, out of bed, must be pretty interesting, exciting, and yes, perhaps even arousing for him. He immediately raises a hand and gently brushes it against the side of her head, watching the delicate brown threads flow through his two separated fingers like silk.

Then he notices the two locks of hair tied behind and he tilts his head to see what that’s about: she hears him gasp when he sees the star-shaped hairpin.

“The wonders of human hair.” she jokes, getting redder. Jaal’s eyes quickly move back to her face and he says slowly, with all the sincerity, love, and certainty in the world:

“You are stunning.”

And here she giggles again, looking down before looking at him again, biting her lips as she grins at him.

His hand grabs hers and he is about to say something, something _important_ and sweet and tender, she can see it, when Kallo announces: “We’ve arrived.”

Scott is bouncing on his feet right in front of the console of the galactic map and Chloe hears him point at all the cool things he’s already spotting in the docks of the city.

“Wow, it’s all so clean! Look at those cool roofs! And what are those things, solar lights?”

“Well,” she chuckles, looking back at Jaal, who seems to have just remembered where he is, “someone is eager to get off the ship. We should go.”

“Yes.” he says, voice hoarse and rumbling. He brings her hand to his mouth and kisses it without breaking eye contact. She grins again.

“Scott!” she then calls. “Come on, we will accompany you to the main entrance.”

Her brother runs to her like his life depends on it and then he remembers Jaal is here in the room too; the two men look at each other, slightly embarrassed, then Scott clears his throat and nods at Jaal with a smile.

“Good morning.” he says and Jaal smiles back; for a moment, they really look like two brothers-in-law and Scott even opens his mouth to say something else, but then he stops and nods towards the airlock.

“So…? Shall we go?”

“Yeah.” Chloe swallows down the slight disappointment and prefers to feel only the hope blossoming in her heart instead, the one that tells her these two dorks will soon talk with each other without embarrassment and fear.

She also dreads it a little bit, because that will also be the day when they will joke about her and Scott will show her boyfriend all the old, mortifying pictures of their childhood.

But that’s not a bad thing, after all, she thinks as Jaal’s hand moves to caress her hair.

 

\- - - -

 

Aya is beautiful. It’s alien, different, and _new_ and Scott’s heart thrums wildly in his chest.

It’s like he finally boarded a ship and went through one of the relays of the Arcturus Station, leaving it all behind.

Well, he _did_ do that – he did that to a so large extent that he left his whole _galaxy_ behind -, but that’s not the point.

The point is that he’s finally exploring Heleus. Seeing the people and things that live in this new home so unfamiliar, so scary to him.

And even if his First Contact experience didn’t go so well, he’s not going to consider those two encounters on Meridian and the Nexus official, but will instead focus on what and who awaits him here on Aya, hoping he has learned one thing or two after a few hours spent on the Tempest with his sister, her angaran boyfriend, and the angaran dictionary SAM was so kind to update for him.

The docks of the city are cool – tidy and colored, they remind him of those Greek or Italian cities the Alliance often advertised to sea-lover aliens like the salarians and the drells.

The angara seem used to the Tempest landing in their city, but some still glance at its shape and engines with a yearning to learn more about them. Some even stop to admire it from afar.

Almost everyone acknowledges Chloe and Jaal’s presence, nodding at them, greeting them with a wave of their hand or a big smile, often followed by a “Pathfinder!” or “Hi, Jaal!”.

Then they see him and their curiosity returns: they don’t conceal it and it’s clear they notice his similarity with his sister – or perhaps they even recognize him from the vids -, because he hears the words “brother” a lot.

The two guards at the entrance are forced to ask him questions; he doesn’t appear on their records and they scan him first, eyeing him and Chloe.

“A new member of your crew, Pathfinder?” one of them asks, her tone kind, and she chuckles.

“Yes, he’s my brother, Scott.”

“H-Hello.” Babbling again. Why does he always have to babble in front of the angara?

He remembers what he told Chloe and what she told him; he thinks about the stuff he read while ill and the stuff he read the previous night and a bit of his anxiety dies out, although his hands keep sweating _a lot_ and his throat is dry.

Thank God angara do not shake hands or he would have made a mess.

“Wait! You are the one the Archon caught!” the other guard gasps. He can’t see their faces due to their helmets, but the tone of the guard’s voice is unmistakable: awe, surprise, and even a tiny bit of admiration.

“Yes, that’s me.” he says, _lamely_ , but the angara don’t seem to mind the obviousness of his words. They are thrilled by the confirmation, instead, and one of them laughs, even bouncing on his legs.

For a second, he reminds Scott of a cute, big, purple rabbit.

“I heard you helped killing him! Anyone who kicked the Archon’s ass is welcome here.”

He smiles at that, a true smile, and his next joke is decent, caused by his anxiety, but also his joy to be here, be _alive_ : “It was a pretty good ass-kicking, I admit it.”

The angara laugh and then the door opens; Jaal and Chloe exchange with them a few more words while Scott proceeds, entering what looks like a small plaza, with a holographic news outlet and a beautiful mural depicting angara in ceremonial outfits.

There is a particular smell in the air, pungent, odd, but not unpleasant and he fills his lungs with it, his mind unable to give it a name. It reminds him of lilac or perhaps basil, but he isn’t sure and he stops trying to recognize it. Everything here is new, different, but that’s not always a bad thing.

“The market is this way.” Jaal tells him, pointing at a beautiful pathway lined with flowers, benches, and round floating lights, which turn out to be a bigger, more complex version of the angaran omnitools that everyone in the city can use.

The feeling of being in a tropical or Mediterranean city increases, but there are also many details that tell his mind he isn’t on Earth; first of all, the angara he can see everywhere, accompanied by their melodious voices, colorful garments and scarves, and loud manners.

Then the flowers and plants, so mysterious and strange-looking; Scott has never been an expert about flora, but he recognizes a new ecosystem when he sees one.

There are _waterfalls_ too: he can hear their sound echo in the pathway and then he sees one, tall and majestic, its sweet water falling on his hair and skin in round, luminescent droplets. It’s not cold and he is sure it shimmers faintly: perhaps an effect of the angaran bioelectricity?

At last, the market appears in front of his eyes, framed by more colored tiles, by the symbols of the angaran alphabet – which looks eerily familiar -, by more angara talking, bartering with each other, selling and buying or simply enjoying the view from the terrace.

A sight like this would have overwhelmed him just the day before, after his first awful encounter with the angara; now he feels calmer, even though he cannot deny how painful that little bit of anxiety still boiling in him is, especially when it twists his stomach like that.

He _prays_ there are public bathrooms here.

“Well… We will leave you to your exploration, then.” his sister says, smiling at him, and she shakes her head when Jaal asks her a question with his eyes. He doesn’t even need to pronounce it: she immediately understands what he wants to tell her and she replies in the same way, using her expression and a simple gesture of her hand.

She has learned a lot from Jaal and the angara.

Despite the startling openness on his sister’s face – she has always been so awkward and goofy that reading her was like trying to decipher a Hanar poem -, Scott doesn’t feel bad, jealous, or scared.

He’s _surprised_ and a part of him – one he still doesn’t want to admit exists – wants to become extroverted and clear about his feelings too.

“Alright, I… I will start from the market, I guess.” He clears his throat, looking around with his hands on his hips, a typical Dad’s pose. “What should I do if I get lost?”

“Use the map on your omnitool – SAM automatically downloaded it for you – or the one provided by the transport service.” Chloe explains without missing a beat, precise like Mom. Then she smirks and he sees a trace of amusement in her eyes. “Or ask for directions.”

Jaal laughs at that, but he is not mocking him, just agreeing with her, and Scott plays along, lightly punching her shoulder.

“Go, you two. Go smooch somewhere and let me explore in peace.”

“Brother. Scott.” Jaal hesitates for a second, before lowering his voice: “If someone bothers you, call us or come to us. Understood?”

“What?” Part of his anxiety spikes up. “Why should someone bother me?”

“They might exaggerate with their jokes or ask you too many questions, for example.” Jaal is eyeing him like he is a frail child, one who needs a lot of protection to go around. He feels mildly offended, but then he understands the big guy’s intentions.

He isn’t trying to offend him nor he thinks he really is weak and in need of assistance. He just wants to make sure his experience on Aya will be good, for the sake of Chloe too.

Every time he stops to think about things for a second without giving in to panic, things look better.

So he doesn’t snap at Jaal or glare at him; instead, he smiles at him and punches his shoulder too, seeing how happy that makes him and Chloe.

“Don’t worry! I’ll handle them better than yesterday, I promise. And if I won’t…” He looks at them both, serious: “Then I’ll come to you, I promise.”

“Good!” His sister and Jaal beam at him, then they leave, heading hand in hand towards the raised side of the market, the one with the terrace looking out over the beautiful, incredibly diverse landscape of Aya.

He thought it was strange seeing lava and hurricanes coexist together with lush vineyards, vines, and tropical forests. This sight that he observed from the Tempest as they landed was jarring enough to confuse him, but now he thinks it’s a pretty good analogy to the angara: welcoming and full of life, but also passionate, stubborn, ready to show how lively they can be.

He admits this was a thought that frightened him a lot: it haunted him during dinner, because if the angara can be so open with their love and kindness, that means they can be open with their rage and frustration too, right?

But then he saw the love in Jaal’s eyes, he saw the way he worries for Chloe, the way he always touches her with respect, with a sense of healthy possessiveness that says “ _you are mine and I am yours, wherever you go take me with you.”_

Even now, from the distance, he watches them walk along the terrace with huge smiles on their faces and Jaal’s eyes never leave hers as she speaks or points at stuff on the horizon. His hand grasps tightly hers and he admires the shape of her nose and the color of her hair.

Believing the angara capable of being _abusive_ partners just because they show their emotions without restraints was a foolish, rude, childish thing to do and Scott is aware of that now, so aware that shame burned his heart more than once during the night, as he spent hours reading their vocabulary, filled with poetry and affection for every little thing in life.

Ascribing to this new alien species human faults or characteristics is stupid and he should know better than that. He knows it was his fear talking and that he really didn’t think all angara capable of being dangerous with their feelings, but that’s not an excuse and he feels the strong urge to shout how sorry he is at the top of his lungs, so that every angara can hear him.

He glances at his sister and her boyfriend one last time, before they disappear from his sight, swallowed by the crowd and foliage: Jaal is whispering something in her ear and Chloe is laughing, her hair moving in the wind and drawing shapes in the air.

Scott sees some angara look at them, probably surprised by seeing one of their people and a human be together. They glance down at their hands, then at Chloe’s smile as she kisses Jaal’s cheek, then at his dark, intense look as he whispers something else, his other hand moving to touch her hair.

Ah, he was right, then. They are really going to smooch each other somewhere.

Chuckling, he enters the market and is relieved to see it’s not dissimilar from the market one would see in a small town of Earth or in specific neighborhoods of the Citadel: there is food – surprisingly, only a vast array of fruit and vegetables -, but also weapons and armors and anything angara may need in their fights against the kett.

One of the merchants glare at him when he timidly approaches his booth, so he steers away from him and stiffly moves to the fruit merchant, an angaran woman with a small, but kind smile.

“Hello.” she says, noticing his interest. “Would you like some angaran fruit? It’s all cultivated here on Aya.”

“Uh…” His bad habit of torturing his hands come back, but as long as he doesn’t snap his fingers in half, he should be good. He spots a round, yellow fruit similar to a mango, but it clearly _isn’t_ a mango and he has no idea how it tastes like.

“That is a paripo.” the merchant explains. “It’s sweet, with pungent undertones. I think you might like it.”

“I…” Scott takes a deep breath and looks at the angara. _Small steps_ , he tells himself. _Small steps. Don’t mince your words._

“Forgive me if I’m rude,” he starts, hoping it won’t sound like a terrible apology for what he’s about to say, “but I was told angara mostly eat… paste? Is that right?”

The angara chuckles, a crystalline sound. Like Jaal before, she isn’t mocking him or laughing at him, but simply expressing amusement and it’s fascinating and _refreshing_ how immediately clear the meaning is, how Scott can understand it so easily, without misunderstandings.

“Yes, we turn our food into paste. Easier to carry and consume in battle without wasting precious resources. That way more people can eat and we… how you humans say it? Kill two birds with one stone?” She chuckles again, shaking her head. “That’s a silly, but funny idiom. I like it.”

“Silly, but funny. That’s us!”

He uses humor to feel better, and he _does_ feel better, especially when the merchant laughs with him.

“Fruit in this form is rare.” she continues, gesturing at her goods. “And expensive. If you buy a paripo from me, it means you are have something to celebrate.” She stops, blinking slowly. “You know, it’s strange. I’m sure I already had this conversation, long ago.”

“Maybe another alien asked you the same questions.” Scott suggests, taking a new interest in this paripo fruit. It looks good and if angara think it tastes sweet, then it must be the most _saccharine_ thing human taste-buds will ever taste.

Also, if it really means what the merchant said it means… he has another reason to buy one.

“Yes!” the woman exclaims all of a sudden, making him jump. “You are right! I said the exact same thing to the Pathfinder, the first time she was allowed through the gates.”

“Oh, you mean my sister!” he blurts out, a huge grin spreading on his face. He’s always happy to brag about her and hear more about her experiences, especially now and here, surrounded by her First Contact species.

The merchant blinks again, eyes wide, then she narrows them, studying him intently. Scott stays still, continuing to smile, and the angara murmurs: “Stars. You do look like her.”

“We are twins.” He rubs his neck, not used to being stared at like that. “Uh… So…”

The angara starts chuckling again and this time the sound turns into a giggle.

“She was calmer than you.” she says, sincerely but without judging. “But still very, very excited and curious, like you are. I can see you are part of the same family.”

“Thank you.” He smiles and nods at a paripo. “Can I buy one?”

“Yes, we accept your credits. Bartering for a paripo would cost you too many things, anyway.” She taps something onto her omnitool and Scott’s pings; a window opens up and he can see the total, which apparently includes a “bag” to carry the fruit.

It’s _a lot_ of credits, but it’s not like he didn’t bring any money from the Milky Way. Chloe was also kind enough to send him some, a few days before his discharge from the Cryo Bay.

He accepts the transaction and both omnitools ping again.

“Thank you.” the angara smiles, before turning to take a bag of unknown material and one of the round fruits. She stops, though, and looks back at Scott.

“Wait, do you plan to continue your visit? You can leave the bag here and come get it later.”

“Oh!” He glances at the fruit: it’s not big, but it will definitely get bothersome to carry around. “You are right. Thank you.”

The merchant takes a rectangular label and what looks like a short, green pencil. She hands them both to Scott and motions him to write.

“Your name.” she explains when he stares at her without moving a muscle. “So we will know which bag is yours.” She grimaces. “Not that I expect more people to buy a paripo, but you never know. The Archon’s death is cause of celebration.”

“Tell me about it.” he chuckles, writing down his name in clear – Latin – letters; the angara observes them take form on the label with an appreciative hum, then asks: “What does it say?”

“Scott.”

“Scott Ryder.” She nods, as if she heard that name before and she probably has, although she didn’t know it had his face. “Mine is Felaan. Thank you for helping kill the Archon, Scott Ryder.”

“You are welcome.” he grins, suddenly feeling proud of _himself_ , and he gives her the label. She sticks it to the bag with another giggle.

 

\- - - -

 

He reaches the _tavetaan_ next and it’s a cozy, relaxing place. There are mostly angara sitting at the tables or at the counter, but he also sees Nexus scientists and researchers, taking a break or talking with the citizens of Aya.

He sees hope and enthusiasm in everyone’s eyes and he knows it’s all very recent, that things were bad at first, especially when exaltation was first discovered or when the truth about the Jaardan came out.

The war isn’t over, of course, and both the angara and the Initiative know this, but with the Archon dead and the kett confused and leaderless, it’s obvious people just want to let themselves go for a while and enjoy this moment of relative peace.

This is what his sister and her team achieved. When she first came here, there were fear and distrust, then she changed it all for the better.

 _But_ , he admits to himself, even if rather timidly, _I guess I did my small part too._

He asks for a drink and the bartender – he discovers he’s actually a very important figure, a sort of cook-slash-scientist who continuously works on nutrients and food to help the population – smiles at him and gives him a tall glass full of… something.

“Oh boy. What is it?” Scott chuckles, not nervously, but excitedly. The drink smells funny, but not bad. It looks like plain water, but he sees that beautiful shimmer again, as if it is full of glitter, and realizes it really is the water of Aya.

The bartender – Roaan - confirms it is, his grin growing.

“There is a small quantity of _tavum_ in it. It’s an intoxicant, but it shouldn’t get you drunk.”

“Alright. Here goes nothing!” He closes his eyes and drinks the water all in one gulp.

At first, he tastes only the light, peculiar sweetness of the water, then the _tavum_ hits him like a sack of bricks to the face: he coughs and sputters, but thankfully he doesn’t spill any of the drink onto the counter and the bartender lets out a roaring laughter, not unlike Jaal’s.

The unpleasant experiences he had the previous day are gone from his mind: Scott laughs with the bartender and the other angara who watched the scene and then two of them let him taste their own drinks, sharing directly the glass with him, not caring that he’s an alien.

He learns the names of the fruits used to make those cocktails, the names of the drinks, and then the names of the angara themselves. They are loud and kind and it’s almost like being back to the barracks on the Arcturus Station, but there isn’t an underlying sense of shared frustration here, only joviality and camaraderie.

And instead of looking at his map, Scott asks them for directions.

Thanks to their explanation, he finds the Repository of Memory without problems, but he risks to get lost _in it_ : not because it’s particularly big or anything, but because it’s full of angaran, Remnant, kett, and Milky Way relics.

He looks at every single stand, reads every single plaque, and asks so many questions to the curator – an angara called Avela – that her two assistants have to intervene so he can ask them questions too, without bothering the poor, busy woman too much.

They say this with the most amused and fond smiles he ever saw on someone’s face and when they learn he’s Chloe Ryder’s twin brother – “Stars, I didn’t notice the similarities!” – they become even friendlier.

“She found three very important angaran relics! They predate the Scourge, a detail of the utmost importance.” the curator says and his pride for Chloe grows, just like his hope to be able to find similar artifacts in his journeys.

He still fears he won’t be able to grow like she did, but perhaps all that matters is that he _grows_ , even if his results will be different from hers.

Just as he ponders about that, admiring an ancient angaran musical instrument, a door opens and two other angara enter the room, coming from what looks like an underground part of the Repository or another floor entirely.

They catch his attention immediately: one angara, a woman, looks rather elegant, with golden accessories on her head and clothes. She looks different from the other female angara he saw: more… delicate, but tougher at the same time. She gives him a lot of maternal vibes.

The other angara, a man, is scary. A big, frowning guy with two ugly scars on the left side of his face, glaring at his angaran omnitool as if it just offended his mothers.

“You work too much, Moshae. Your vitals are still low.” he says with a tired sigh and Scott thinks he is the one who should rest more, if that’s how he usually sounds like. Then he realizes how he just called the woman next to him.

“That’s not true. I believe I’m not working _enough_ , to be honest.” the Moshae chuckles graciously. “I enjoy being ambassador of Heleus. It is a huge responsibility, but it’s not like I never had those before.”

Then her eyes – so big and galaxy-like like all angara’s – set on Scott and she lets out a small, whispered “oh”. She smiles at him and walks over to him, followed by her confused, tense companion.

“ _Paavoa_.” she greets him, slightly bowing her head, and Scott does the same, mouth dry, sweat running down his back.

“Hello.” he says, hoping that’s the right way to respond to that. “So… you are the lady Moshae?”

She giggles at that, but doesn’t correct him or anything, so he assumes he didn’t say something entirely stupid. The guy behind her, though, looks even more confused and _annoyed_.

“I am. It is a stubborn title that will never leave me, I fear.” Her smile grows and it becomes warmer. “You are Scott Ryder, are you not?”

Her friend, who is busy typing something onto his omnitool, freezes and his head snaps back at where Scott is, big eyes drilling a hole into his face.

“ _What?_ ” he murmurs and Scott desperately tries to remember whether he ever offended this guy or his family in any way in the past.

“I… I am.” he confirms, looking back and forth from the Moshae to her friend, silently asking for her help or any kind of explanation. “You saw me in one of the vids going around?”

“Oh, no, I saw you that day on Meridian! You probably didn’t notice me, you were far too weak and hurt.” Her tone turns sympathetic and kinder when she pronounces the last sentence. He knows she is perfectly aware how painful a meeting with the Archon could be.

“You were on the battlefield, too?” he says, not really able to imagine such a lady punching or shooting kett, but angara are surprising creatures, he learned, so his confusion passes soon.

“I was and I greatly enjoyed myself.” She raises her chin high, proud. “The day the Archon died will probably become an angaran holiday.”

Then she turns to her friend, her smile containing a hint of amusement.

“Evfra, stop glaring at this poor boy and introduce yourself.”

Being in the presence of the leader of the angaran Resistance should fill Scott with his familiar anxiety and panic, but the past hour he spent in Aya did miracles for him and he feels reborn, so much he is able to beam at the towering angara and extend his arm to shake hands with him in the angaran way.

“Evfra of the Resistance, right? I heard about you. I’m Scott Ryder.”

His gesture greatly surprises Evfra: he obviously didn’t expect him to know how angara greet each other and he looks at his arm like it’s a poisonous barb, before relaxing a bit and bumping his fist against his shoulder.

He grunts while doing so, but at least he isn’t glaring at him anymore.

“Ryder.” He pronounces that name with a fake calm and his expression hardens for a second. “Please, tell me you are not related to the Pathfinder.”

“I am her twin brother.” He feels like joking, even if Evfra looks ready to _die_. “Can’t you tell from my face?”

The angara stays silent, then he inhales and exhales slowly, even closing his eyes while doing so.

Then he looks _pained_ and a sound much similar to a low, resigned sigh leaves his lips as he turns to the Moshae, scowling.

“I want to retire.”

 

\- - - -

 

Half an hour passes until the Moshae lets him leave the Repository. Like Chloe expected, she asked him some questions about the Archon and the Remnant tech, but it went better than what Scott hoped: not only he didn’t panic or answered rudely due to his trauma, he also managed to keep calm enough to answer honestly and clearly, sometimes even cracking a joke or two.

He promises her he will come back soon to continue their conversation and the last impression she gives him is that of a very wise, strong-willed woman.

Evfra is probably the grumpiest angara he has ever met, but there is great sincerity in his manners too and he goes straight to the point, blunt and honest like very few people in the Milky Way were.

There was a moment when Scott stared too much at his scars and the angara glared at him again, barking: “What? Never saw scars inflicted by a kett weapon before?”

“Sorry!” Scott’s panic rose a bit in that moment, but he managed to keep it under control and fix everything with a candid: “The kett left some scars on me too. On my brain, to be more precise.”

Evfra narrowed his eyes and frowned, perfectly silent, while the Moshae gasped loudly.

“The Remnant tech, right?”

“Yeah. When my sis and I interfaced with it without our AI, it fried our brains a little. The doctors found some faint scarring on them.” He realized he had probably revealed a very alarming detail, so he hurried to add, also to defend his sister’s reputation: “But it’s nothing serious! It doesn’t stop us from doing our work, it was just… uh… a flesh wound?”

The Moshae smiled at that and reassured him that she understood perfectly, but Evfra stared at him with something akin to sympathy and a weird kind of respect for the whole time.

Now Scott is wandering near the entrance of the Resistance Headquarters, admiring the way the light plays with the waterfalls and the differently colored skin of the angara.

He’s getting hungry and just as he debates whether go back and buy some fruit to eat while walking or see if the nutrient paste the _tavetaan_ sells really is that bad, he spots his sister and Jaal near the terrace.

She is laughing as he plays with her hair – no, he’s trying to _braid_ it.

He’s laughing too, but there is also a look of deep concentration on his face whenever he looks back at the brown locks in his big hands. She is holding her hairpin, waiting for him to complete the hairstyle.

“So I twist it… just like this?” he asks, seizing the hair in a delicate grip and twirling it; Scott realizes he’s trying to tie it in Chloe’s usual ponytail, but with little success, also because of his bioelectricity which causes a lot of static to go around.

“Yes, then ...” she starts, but another laugh bubbles up in her throat and she lets it out, bringing a hand to her mouth to muffle it. There are tears of mirth and joy in her eyes and Jaal laughs with her, bumping his forehead against the back of her head.

They laugh like two teenagers in love – no, that’s not right, their love actually looks more mature than that. It reminds Scott of a kind of love he already saw before and then he understands.

They are just like Mom and Dad were in private, in those quiet moment when Dad thought he and Chloe were asleep or too busy in their rooms to hear how loudly their parents were laughing and joking.

He remembers a particular day, when he walked in on his parents playing like that: Dad couldn’t close the zipper of Mom’s dress, no matter how hard he tried, and they were giggling so much their faces had gotten all red.

Dad looked rather sheepish when he noticed Scott, but the twinkle in his eyes stayed there for the whole day, another proof of how much he loved his family and how much strength his hard job took from him.

“Wait, I’ll show you again.” Chloe says and she ties her hair in just a few seconds, with swift, precise movements of her hands and wrists. Jaal hums thoughtfully, then he delicately unties the ponytail and smooths her hair with his large palms.

“Beautiful.” he murmurs, before kissing the back of her head and her cheek, and she laughs again, patting his thigh.

“Come on, Darling One! Try again.”

They look _adorable_ and Scott smiles, wondering how he could ever fear the angara to be dangerous, how he could ever fear _Jaal_ to be dangerous for Chloe.

He is about to leave, his heart finally at peace like never before, when he hears them.

“Ugh, can you believe it? The alien took him!”

“It means he really _is_ dense, then.”

He slowly turns to where the two voices are coming from. Two female angara are whispering to each other while giving sidelong glances to Chloe and Jaal; they look surprised, disappointed, one of them might even be a bit angry, but most of all they look confused.

“I don’t understand. What does he see in her? She is not bad-looking, but…”

“Her head is small and her legs are weird. Also that hair he’s touching… _Skkut,_ it’s disturbing.”

Scott breathes deeply and counts to ten, although he keeps glaring at the two angara without pause.

“The most handsome fighter of the Resistance… together with an alien.” One of the two women sighs, folding her arms on her chest. “What a waste.”

“I heard humans might be compatible with us, though.” her friend says, causing the other angara and Scott to jump.

_What?_

“What?”

“Yes, I’m not joking! They are much similar to us, even internally, and since we were… you know… created, maybe the Jaardan wanted us to be similar to other races they found in the universe.”

The other angara babbles some unintelligible words, then she manages to spit out: “What are you saying? The _Jarevaon Imasaf_ is too far from here! The Jaardan…”

“The Jaardan created life. Who knows, maybe they were able to travel through galaxies without much problems, they saw the humans, and thought it would be useful to make us compatible with more species.”

“ _Useful_ why?”

The angara shrugs. She is talking about her species’ creation and the possible implications and reasons behind it like one would talk about the weather.

Her friend shakes her head, scoffing, and goes back to her unashamed staring. Chloe and Jaal are laughing again after the ponytail Jaal tried to make immediately got loose.

“Stars, can you imagine? Their children would be so odd. Her nose is so big.”

“I like her laughter, though.”

“Yes, but he is more stupid and blind than I thought.”

Scott can’t stand that anymore: grunting, he stomps towards the two women and clears his throat loudly to catch their attention.

They gasp and turn to him, tensing up.

“That human is my sister.” he starts, making the two angara gasp again. He can’t tell, but they are paler than before. “And she is the best person in Andromeda. The fact that the best fighter of the Resistance was able to see that and got together with her means he is a great person too.”

He folds his arms, glaring at the two women, trying to look imposing and bigger like Dad taught him before he went to work on the Arcturus Station.

“So, please. Stop talking ill of my sister and my brother-in-law and aim your jealousy and envy at someone else.” He grunts. “Better yet, appreciate how special their love is and find some harmony in your lives. I just did that and it feels _good_.”

He smiles at them, to show them he’s not angry anymore – he still is, but he doesn’t want to appear too frightening or resentful – and walks away, heading towards the Resistance Headquarters, his steps light, his heart even lighter.

The two women share a dumbfounded look, then they glance at the couple again: they are now facing each other, Chloe’s hair tied in a messy, but tight ponytail, and Jaal is caressing her cheek while holding her close. They are staring into each other’s eyes, murmuring words of love.

“Alright.” one of the two angara admits with a sigh. “They are kind of cute, I guess.”

Her friend stays quiet for a while, then she timidly asks: “Don’t you think the Pathfinder’s brother is particularly… fascinating?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A few notes about this chapter!
> 
> \- The frustration Scott feels is actually canon. After finishing the game, you can ask SAM how being connected to Scott felt like. He says that he sensed frustration and a growing desire to explore the unknown while staring at the relays of the Arcturus Station. "The rest is private", but he also says that despite his illness, Scott was ready to jump on his feet and fight. Ryder is as strong as he is, but she expresses that potential differently, probably because her job was more satisfying and she didn't miss anything while in Andromeda.
> 
> \- All the angara mentioned in this chapter actually appear in the game: Felaan really is the fruit merchant, Roaan is the bartender/scientist who takes care of the _tavetaan_ and works on the nutrient paste, and the two whispering angara are the ones who gossip about Jaal when you first explore Aya.
> 
> \- I'm not sure whether Bioware really is pushing the "angara and human are compatible" idea or not with all their hints scattered around, but I like to think that through some space magic (or perhaps thanks to the angara's nature itself, like the end of the chapter implies) they might really have children together. Hybrids are actually canon in the Mass Effect universe: in the OT, it's stated that there are ways to create interspecies offspring, but they are illegal and frowned upon just like experiments with AI. It's a pretty delicate topic and I still have to decide whether an angaran/human hybrid would look good and healthy or not, but since the angara were a The Sims-like experiments made by the Jaardan, I wouldn't be surprised if their creators made them compatible with other species they observed in other galaxies (maybe the Jaardan could observe the other galaxies thanks to their synthetic nature or, if they weren't synthetics, they used the Remnants? Who knows?). It's all crazy theories, so let's just say it's all a big, bolded "?" and let's go with adoption for now :'D
> 
> \- The comments about Chloe's look and her insecurity come from the heavy criticism the default/Sara look (the one I used for Chloe) got when the game was released. At first, I didn't like it much either, but then it really grew on me and now I think the default face is the cutest. I love it a lot ; v ;


	5. Chapter 5

“I still can’t believe your mother is alive.”

They are still standing in front of the terrace overlooking Aya’s landscape, in a pose similar to the one they had at the lake: Ryder pressed flush against Jaal’s body, his arms wrapped around her waist, hands on her stomach.

His lips touch the soft curve of her ear and she smiles, tilting back her head and inhaling slowly.

Jaal’s perfume is stronger today, nearly intoxicating, and it covers the other pleasant smells of the city. She remembers he said something about trying a few new scents and making a new perfume for her too.

“We need to find a cure. Dad was hoping there would be something useful and innovative here in Heleus, something that could help her.”

“We will find it.” he promises, kissing her neck. “I will ask our doctors here on Aya and Havarl. Angaran physiology is different from humans’, but that might be the key.”

“I agree.” SAM intervenes calmly. “The angara’s control over bioelectricity and the technology they developed accordingly may indeed prove useful to improve Ellen Ryder’s conditions.”

Jaal’s inner electrical current speeds up at that, making Chloe’s hair stand up again. It still hasn’t recovered from all the touching and braiding Jaal did and her ponytail is messier than usual, but that makes it all even more endearing.

“Darling One!” he grins, swaying her in his arms. “Can you imagine? My mother will soon meet yours!”

“We should give her the good news, next time we are on Havarl.” she says, kissing him. Even though SAM told her and Scott to be patient and cautious, she can’t really help but feel excited and thrilled, her heart playing a drumming song every time she imagines her future with Jaal.

She giggles, thinking about Mom’s face when she will learn about the angara and will see him for the first time.

“What?” he chuckles, curious, peppering her cheek with kisses. One of his hands moves lower, until it rests exactly above her groin, making her squirm and blush. “Tell your Darling Jaal what makes you laugh so adorably, _taoshay_.”

“My mother is going to love you.”

That makes him blush _so much_ she is sure all the blood in his body is currently flowing to his face only. His smile is more blinding than the sun warming Aya, though, and even if she already reassured him about her mother’s approval before, he didn’t have the time to register it, because he was too surprised by knowing she is still alive.

Now, the full meaning and importance of those words – the same he told her, so long ago, in his room – isn’t lost to him and he can’t hold in his joy and relief.

He makes a happy sound, muffling it against her neck, and she laughs harder when his bioelectricity spikes up and sends tingles all over her body.

“She is going to love Sahuna, too.” she adds, grinning at her emotional boyfriend, who is on the verge of happy tears. Seeing him like this nearly makes her cry too. “And your siblings! And the rest of your family as well.”

“I can’t wait.” he sniffs, placing a hand above her heart, and she rests hers on the back of it.

“Same.” Part of her mind reminds her that Ellen will have to learn about Dad too, but she pushes those thoughts away, wanting to focus only on the happy things today.

There is much to be happy about. Scott is already feeling better, relations between the angara and the Initiative are improving day after day, colonists of every race are finally settling down in the habitation decks of the Nexus, the planets are thriving with new life, the kett have been – temporarily – defeated and the Scourge is being examined, studied, to find a way to stop its course or even minimize its future damages.

She feels at peace. She feels _harmony_ all around herself, like a well-written song speaking to her heart and mind, telling her everything will be fine.

Once Scott feels completely well, things will get even better, she is sure of it.

Speaking of him, she wonders where he is and if he’s having any trouble. He hasn’t contacted them, so it means everything is alright.

That, or he’s too stubborn to call, but she hasn’t heard any commotion in the market nor Evfra called them to complain about an emotional human who looks like her, so she tries not to worry too much.

He will have to meet Sahuna soon, she knows that. It would be rude not to tell that adorable woman that her brother is finally operative again, especially after everything she did and said to reassure her that he would be fine.

She last saw her a few weeks before Scott was given permission to leave the Cryo Bay: Sahuna introduced her to other two mothers, Feladyr and Vaasana, the same ones who called Jaal to ask for his help in bringing Teviint, Lathoul, and Baranjj back home.

That meeting was as intense and sweet as the first one, especially because they brought along their _little kids_. Adorable, sweet, chubby angara who jumped into her arms and tugged at her hair, asking her countless of adorable questions and pressing wet kisses on her cheeks.

It was heaven and the look on Jaal’s face when he saw her like that ignited a fire in her body and soul. He stared at her for the whole time, eyes large and full of passion and love, and she could feel his electrical current touch her skin like one of his most tender caresses.

Feladyr and Vaasana thanked her for helping their other children, then dragged her to a sort of smaller living room and insisted to have a drink with her, while gossiping about Jaal and his relationship with her. The kids demanded to stay with them and they climbed on her lap and shoulders, some even falling asleep.

 _“I know he will treat you right.”_ Feladyr said. _“He is such a dear boy!”_

_“He told us much about you! Is it true your hair gets darker when it’s wet?”_

Sahuna entered after a few minutes and there was a pained, guilty expression on her face, so unbearable to look at that Chloe immediately stood up and took her hands, asking if there was something wrong.

_“I tried preparing that pie I mentioned in one of my past messages, but I still need some time to make it perfect.”_

She sighed – while Chloe recovered from an heartattack – and patted her hand, asking: _“Would be it okay for you to wait a little more, my dear? I swear, I’ll soon get it right!”_

She kept her promise: when they later met on Meridian, Sahuna brought her the best pie Chloe had ever eaten. Scott wasn’t feeling too well that day and Harry prohibited any kind of visit, so she couldn’t share it with him.

 _“Don’t worry! I’ll make another one for him!”_ And Sahuna’s smile was bright and wide just like her son’s.

“Darling One.” Jaal calls her, kissing her temple. “You are staring at the distance, but you’re not really watching anything.”

“Sorry! I was thinking about Scott and your mom.” She turns to him, smiling. “We should tell her he’s back on his feet now. I’m sure she will want to meet him.”

“Absolutely.” He kisses her hair, looking proud of the ponytail he made. He gets worried, though, and asks her quickly: “Are you sure he will be alright? I fear it might be too soon.”

“Yes, meeting an entire angaran family may still be too much for him.” she chuckles, stroking his hands. “But your mother deserves to know he’s fine. We could ask her to be a little more patient and wait for him to get better.”

“Don’t worry, she will wait all the time necessary.” He kisses her cheek, then lowers his voice, using that sultry, suave, but also timid tone that makes her shiver with pleasure and anticipation:

“We should get back to the Tempest and send her a message. We won’t be disturbed.”

She hums, giving him an amused, coy look. Jaal’s eyes look even more beautiful, so up close.

“That’s the only thing you want to do?”

“Well…” The hand near her groin moves a few millimeters lower and she bites her lips, causing him to lick his. “The ship is almost empty and I’m sure the others won’t be back for a long while.”

“The ship is _completely_ empty. Kallo and Gil have decided to visit Aya, too.” SAM corrects him and they aren’t even bothered by his interruption. If anything, his words just arouse them even more.

“Darling One.” Jaal is suddenly serious and she sees that intense look in his eyes again, the same he had on the Tempest, when he saw her new hairstyle and took her hand. He wants to tell her something.

“I… I have to tell you something.”

She swallows and nods. Oh, how she knows him well!

“And… you would prefer to tell me on the Tempest? Alone?”

“Yes.” He brings his hand on her cheek, stroking the soft skin under her eye with his thumb. “I also have to _give_ you something.”

Jaal usually has no problems talking in front of everyone, not even when he wants to tell her he desires her and wants to make love to her (the first time he did that, they were eating dinner with the others and Liam and Suvi almost spat out their food).

So this request is strange: they are in public, yes, but they are in a somewhat secluded part of the terrace and very few people are around them or paying them attention. And even if the entire population of Aya was there, watching them, Jaal would have little problems telling her what burns in his heart, how much he loves her.

Unless it is something he considers embarrassing for her – he knows humans tend to get more embarrassed than angara, although she has gotten quite better at that.

Or maybe it’s something so important and _sacred_ he cannot share it – _doesn’t want_ to share it – with anyone else.

Also, what is this thing he wants to give her? Is that why he wants to do this in private?

She smiles, reassuringly, because he suddenly looks incredibly nervous, just like he was before he confessed his love for her in his room.

“Alright.” she says, kissing him. “Let’s go back.”

He beams at her, but just as they move and take each other’s hand, someone clears their throat.

They turn and see Evfra’s scowling, scarred face.

“Hi there!” Chloe grins at him, waving her hand, and the Resistance leader shoots her a strange look.

“Evfra! It’s good to see you.” Jaal smiles too, before hurrying to say: “Don’t worry, we would have gone to you, sooner or later. I want to know how things are going.”

“They are going well.” Evfra replies, folding his arms. “There, now you know it. No reason to go to the Headquarters.”

Jaal and Chloe share a confused, surprised look. Evfra has always been a blunt man, but today he seems particularly… gruff.

“Are you sure?” she says, raising an eyebrow. “It doesn’t look like they are _that_ good. Did something happen?”

Again that odd look, then he glares at her and Jaal, grunting.

“Why didn’t you tell me there is another one?”

Jaal makes a confused sound and tilts his head; Chloe raises her other eyebrow too and shakes her head.

“Another what?”

Evfra growls and jabs her shoulder with a finger, hissing: “Another _Ryder_! I just met your twin brother! Why didn’t you tell me you had one?”

“Oh, no!”

“ _Skkut_!”

She and Jaal look at each other, nod, then Jaal turns to Evfra with a serious face and puts a hand on his shoulder, saying solemnly, so much the other angara blinks surprised: “Evfra, my friend. I need you to do something for us.”

Evfra blinks again. He has never looked so puzzled before, but his confusion is slowly being replaced by anger.

Before he can snap, Chloe opens her omnitool and selects the Record option. Evfra doesn’t know her language, but he recognizes the program she just opened and narrows his eyes at the screen.

“What? What are you doing?”

“Pretend I’m Scott.” she says, raising her arm to get Evfra’s scowling face into the frame. “It’s not that hard, we are almost identical!”

“Do that and make the same, _exact_ face you made when you first saw him.” Jaal continues, moving next to his girlfriend. “Please! I can’t believe we missed that!”

Evfra’s scowl turns into a flat, annoyed expression. He looks almost disappointed in them, but in the end, he decides to just look completely unimpressed by their behavior.

He even steps back to leave, but they stop him before he can get too far.

“No, wait!”

“Even a few seconds will be enough!”

“I made this same face!” he finally roars, snarling and rubbing his eyes when Chloe and Jaal giggle like two kids and finish to record the scene.

“I can’t believe you saved Heleus.” he grumbles. “And I can’t believe I will have to put up with another Ryder.”

“He’s part of my crew, now.” she grins, closing her omnitool. “So you will have to put up with _us_ every time we land here on Aya or visit the Resistance on other planets.”

Jaal starts giggling madly at that, pretending he _isn’t_ , even though he isn’t really doing much to hide it. Evfra shoots him an ineffective glare, then sighs again.

“Is he a good soldier, at least?”

“He is! My Dad’s training was pretty hard and Scott was stationed in one of the most dangerous stations of the Milky Way.”

Evfra doesn’t look impressed, but at least he isn’t growling anymore.

“Good. One more person able to kill kett is always welcome.”

That’s his blessing. He leaves before they can say more or record him again, but they know his grumpiness is just a mask and Chloe watches him leave with a smile, while Jaal keeps giggling.

“Aw, he already likes him.”

“I wonder how their meeting went. We should ask Scott.” He clears his throat and gives her a sheepish, timid look, smiling sadly. “Umh… _You_ should ask him.”

“Oh, honey.” She takes his hand and presses it on her chest, repeating the gesture he made at the lake. He recognizes it and blushes, his lips curling into that sweet smile that makes him look even more adorable.

“He has already changed, didn’t you see? He might need more time to get completely better, like Lexi said, but this visit to Aya already did miracles to him and he _likes_ you. I know this for sure, now.”

Jaal’s smile grows and he pulls her into one of his loving, tight hugs, mouth pressed on her cheek.

She giggles when he moves his lips across her face, peppering it with tickling kisses that end on her mouth for one final, loud smooch.

“Shall we go?” she asks, grinning, the harmonious song starting to play again in her heart. “I’m really curious to hear what you want to tell me.”

“Yes.” He blushes, but his tender smile is still there and he takes her hand with all the gentleness in the universe, leading her through the city as if she is a queen.

His bioelectricity runs fast and strong and either he cannot control it well due to his emotions or he is so nervous he forgot to do it. Her hand gets numb, but she stays quiet about it to avoid embarrassing him and making him feel guilty.

They talk normally, like they usually do, as they head back to the Tempest and they even look around to see if Scott is nearby, but Jaal’s strides are fast and longer than usual and her heart is beating fast too, blood flowing to her head.

Something important is going to happen, she can feel it. Something _world-changing_ , like when he brought her to his family home or to the lake. She gives him sidelong glances as they walk and sees how bright his eyes are, how strong the flame burning in them is, countless suns illuminating the galaxies in his irises.

They arrive at the docks and Enroh Bosaan is there, checking the cargo of a new shuttle just arrived in the city. He waves at them, smiling, and he hugs Chloe as tightly as he hugs Jaal. He is one of those who most support their relationship, maybe because he’s related to Jaal’s family.

“Are you leaving Aya already?” he asks, surprised, and Jaal is the first to answer:

“No, we are going back to the ship for a moment. We need to contact my true mother.”

Enroh gives him an odd look, a mix between surprise and joy, but Chloe thinks it’s probably just her imagination, so she says:

“My brother is here, by the way.”

“Really?” Enroh’s eyes widen and she grins happily, bouncing on her feet.

“Yeah! You should meet him, I’m sure he has a lot of questions.” She rubs her neck, making an apologetic sound. “Just… Just don’t ask him too many, please. He’s still recovering.”

“Of course! I’ll be happy to answer all the questions he may have.” He looks enthusiastic, even a little impatient. Killing the Archon has improved everyone’s mood, it seems. “I still remember the day you arrived here. So much has changed since then.”

His smile gets sweet, paternal, and there is an amused fondness in his eyes that makes Chloe giggle and Jaal blush.

But something is off: his words seem to be directed at _Jaal_ and the older angara is looking at him, not at her, strangely enough.

Even Jaal’s reaction is weird: he clears his throat, cheeks flushed purple, and impatiently tugs at Chloe’s hand.

“We should go now, Darling One.”

Enroh looks like he’s on cloud nine: he clasps Jaal’s arm and pulls Chloe into another hug, briefer than the first one, but even tighter.

“Wonderful! I’ll leave you to it, then. Say hi to Sahuna for me!”

He walks away, but he turns one last time to wave at them and make a strange gesture directed at Jaal. It almost looks like he’s… encouraging him?

“Uh… Why is he so cheerful, today?” she asks as they activate the bridge that will lead them to the Tempest. “I mean, he is always very kind and sweet, but…”

“Maybe he just received good news.” Jaal replies, clearing his throat again. He shoots her a smile, but it’s a bit strained, even lopsided, as if his mouth doesn’t work well or he forgot how to move it.

“Jaal…” she murmurs as they wait for the Tempest’s decontamination process to let them enter the ship. “Is something wrong?”

He didn’t look so nervous while they were walking through the city, but now he is – metaphorically – sweating buckets. His electromagnetic current is going crazy and her hair just gives up and lets his electricity do whatever it wants with her ponytail.

“Of course not, my light!” God, he is a _terrible_ liar. “Everything is just fine.”

He is still holding her hand, the grip so strong she is surprised she doesn’t hear her bones creak. He leads her to their room – and they have to let go of each other’s hand to climb down the ladder, but he immediately takes it back, before giving her a kiss on the forehead and proceeding to their quarters.

The ship is quieter than usual and Kallo and Gil left most of its systems dormant before leaving.

She can hear just the hum of the drive core and the beeps of some of the main consoles, but everything else is silent, as if the ship is sleeping, knowing it’s safe in Aya and there is no need for it to be vigilant and ready to fly.

As soon as they step into their bedroom, Jaal turns to her and takes her head in his hands, kissing her fiercely, passionately: his kisses are always very intense, sometimes even hungry, but something is different today and she recognizes the chance in his electrical current.

He is… scared?

“Jaal.” she gasps when he pulls back. She searches for his eyes, but he avoids hers, looking down at their joined hands instead. “Jaal, Darling One, what’s wrong?”

His behavior changed so suddenly. She already knew he had to tell her something important when she saw the way he was looking at her here on the ship, before getting into the city. But now that he finally can speak to her, he is terrified and she starts to think that what he needs to tell her may not be a good thing after all.

Maybe… maybe something bad happened? She knows his family accepted her and their relationship, but maybe some distant uncle or cousin or sister complained and talked with him and he changed his mind or decided she is not worth arguing with a part of his family or…

She is about to cry. Jaal taught her there is nothing wrong in showing her emotions, but she really doesn’t want to cry after spending such a lovely day together. She thought everything was _fine_ , they played, joked, kissed, he braided her hair…

He notices her distress and hurries to reassure her with a hug and more kisses on her face.

“My love, my light, don’t cry! Nothing is wrong, I swear it, I just…”

He presses his face against her hair, inhaling deeply, then he sighs, murmuring: “Wait. I’ll show you.”

She stands there, sniffling, while he runs to the wardrobe and rummages in one of his drawers: she sees the bright fabric of his second Rofjinn and he slips a hand under it and pulls out…

A third Rofjinn?

It’s identical to the one he’s wearing and the spare one, but smaller. There are hope and fear on his face, just like the day he confessed his feelings to her, and she realizes this is what he wanted to give her, his gift for her.

“Jaal…” she starts, a different kind of tears prickling her eyes, but he hurries to say, speaking so quickly he almost minces the words:

“Wait, I need to tell you something! It’s… It’s important. You deserve to know this, you _must_ know this.” He takes a deep breath, eyes cast down on the Rofjinn, then he looks at her and she sees they are full of tears.

“I sewed your name in Shelesh on it.” He shows her the letters at the end of the cape: she has seen his so many times before she immediately recognizes them, but there is something different. He hasn’t written just her name: he added it to his _family name_.

 _Chloe Ama Darav_. That’s what is written on it, just like _Jaal Ama Darav_ is what is written on his.

He sees that she understood and continues, voice shaky: “If you accept this and wear this, then you will accept to become part of my family. Officially. It would be the first step towards… towards our bonding. I know we are already bonded to each other, but this would be…”

He grunts, cursing in Shelesh, so softly her translator doesn’t catch it, then he bites his lips and tries again:

“When we will visit my family house again… if you wear this, then everyone will know you want to be part of the Ama Darav family. I… I saw some vids and Liam and Cora told me that humans use rings for this, so their families know they are engaged and…”

“Jaal.” she murmurs, tears running freely down her cheeks. “Are you asking me to marry you? Is this a marriage proposal?”

He swallows. His hands are shaking too, but his hold on the soft fabric of the Rofjinn is delicate, as if he’s afraid of ruining it. He opens his mouth, then closes it and nods.

“Yes.” he finally says, voice hoarse, but clear. He even straightens his back, locking eyes with her, his breathing heavy, chest heaving, but those suns are burning in his eyes again.

“Yes. This would be the first step towards our marriage.”

Then he looks down at the cape and slowly, even cautiously, hands it to her. He doesn’t force it into her hands: he simply extends his arms towards her and waits for any reaction she might have.

She knows she can step back and refuse; she can see how far from the door he decided to stand, leaving her all the space she needs, should she decide to leave.

She also sees the hope and trepidation in his eyes as he watches her, timid and scared, blushing and proud, frightened and hopeful.

She smiles at him and takes the Rofjinn, pressing it against her chest and then her face to breath in its scent.

Sweet and strong, just like Jaal’s, just like _Jaal_.

“Yes.” she says, raising her head, just in time to see his massive chest and feel his large arms around her body. She hears his sobs, too, and she slides an arm around his waist, pulling him close.

“Darling One!” he wails, happy like she never heard him before, mouth pressed on her cheek, hair, forehead, nose, then finally her mouth. “Darling One, love of my life, star of my sky!”

She cries too, but they are smiling like two dorks, holding each other and sharing light, soft, wet kisses, the precious Rofjinn pressed safely between them.

“I was ready to tell you. I’ve been ready for many months, now.” he says, caressing her face with his big hands, so big they shouldn’t be so delicate and precise, but they are and they touch her exactly where her skin is softer and they brush her hair with all the care in the universe, without ever pulling it or tugging at knots.

“I was about to tell you yesterday, when I still thought – hoped – that Scott’s reaction would be positive. But then I saw how disgruntled he was and then you talked about jealousy and how human fathers and brothers tend to be jealous of their daughters and sisters, so I swore to wait more, until he would be ready too, because I don’t want him to feel abandoned, even though that wouldn’t be true at all, so…”

“Jaal.” she giggles, kissing his chin. “Breathe.”

He inhales and exhales, closing his eyes, then he reopens them and continues, more slowly: “So I decided to wait. _But then_ he asked you if we were married and you said _not yet_ and I thought _why not yet?_ And I couldn’t…” He takes her hand and looks down at it, ashamed. “And I couldn’t wait anymore. I felt like I was going mad.”

He raises his eyes to meet hers and murmurs, sad and mortified: “Forgive me, Darling One. I’ve been selfish.”

“Oh, no, Jaal!” She pulls him into another hug, kissing the soft flesh of his neck, right where his head and his neck flaps meet. He rumbles, a happy sound, and closes his eyes for a moment.

“You did good!” she reassures him, kissing his brow. “I’m so, _so happy_ you finally asked me.” She kisses his scarred cheek. “I almost can’t believe this is happening.” His nose. “Like, _really_ , this must be a dream.” His chin. “Because this is too beautiful.” His lips. “And I’m going to cry and laugh for the whole week.”

“As soon as they are happy tears, I won’t complain. Your laugh is the most gorgeous sound in the universe.”

She giggles, then glances down at the Rofjinn. She traces her fingers across her name written in Shelesh and tries to store it into her mind, to remember it, just like Jaal remembered it written in the Latin alphabet to sew it into her handkerchief.

He’s rubbing her shoulders, face pressed against her hair, but he stops to listen intently when she says: “Does your family know? About this, I mean.”

“Yes. I told my mothers what I intended to do yesterday morning, before meeting Scott. The whole family is waiting for the answer. They are probably expecting it with a message or picture or a visit.”

“So… when we will tell Sahuna about Scott…”

“Yes, she will certainly expect us to come over soon, especially if we won’t say a word about your answer.” He sighs and purses his lips, blushing. “That’s why Enroh was so excited. Even those related to the Ama Darav family that live on other planets know about this.”

“God.” she laughs, hiding her face behind a hand. “I can already picture your mothers and siblings waiting anxiously near a terminal, pretending to be busy with stuff while counting every second.”

“A perfect description.” he grins, nuzzling her forehead and bangs. He _really_ likes her hair.

Then he gets worried again, his hands moving to rest upon hers on the Rofjinn.

“My light.” he says. “I don’t want to upset Scott. Even if he is having a good time on Aya, we don’t know how he might react to this. If you want to wait to tell my family…”

“No, that would be rude.” She shakes her head, not liking the idea one bit. She can’t walk into Jaal’s home, pretending he never proposed to her, and watch Sahuna glance disappointingly at her son, believing he didn’t ask her yet, or worriedly at her, believing she refused.

“Also, it’s not like we are getting married _tomorrow_ , right?” she giggles, even though a part of her wouldn’t mind it that much. Jaal smiles and shakes his head too, explaining:

“No, this is just an official engagement. The marriage can take place any time, even tomorrow if one so desires, but the preparations usually take some years. Couples also use this amount of time to make sure they are compatible and see how their future married life would be like.”

“Good. This is something that will help Scott.” She sees the spark of panic in Jaal’s eyes and cups his cheek with a hand, continuing: “He will be happy about it, Jaal, I know it. He will get worried, at first, and he will probably cry a bit, but there will be also happy tears, I promise.”

“Perhaps… we should wait to tell _him_.” Jaal’s eyes move around, not really settling on anything. “We should let him see and explore Heleus and your outposts before visiting my mother. Then, we could tell him. I’m sure he will feel already much better by that time.”

Chloe hums, thinking about it. It’s true, Scott might already look better, but telling him that she just accepted Jaal’s proposal and she’s ready to marry him in a few years would be too much.

The two guys still have to sort things out between them and she doubts her brother’s frail psyche can take this blow, especially since he told her he fears to be abandoned and left behind. First, he must travel, understand that he is truly part of this new home and this new job, and even some short visits to the outposts would help him immensely with that.

Everything else will consequently work itself out.

“Alright.” she nods, smiling at her grinning _fiancé_ – that word alone makes her heart beat ten times faster. “You’re right, that’s the best solution. Let’s tell your mother we will visit her in a few weeks and let’s set route for another planet, in the meantime.”

Worry and panic don’t hold Jaal back anymore now and he beams at her, taking her in his arms and spinning her around, his booming laugh echoing in the large quarters.

“My Darling One!”

He gently lies her down on their bed and their hands move in that way they know so well by now; Jaal’s mouth follows lines and soft expanses of skin, while Chloe’s hands caress familiar ridges and scars; their bodies and souls find each other and they hold each other, this time not under the stars, but the bright, warm sun of Aya.

“When did you sew it?” she asks later, while they lay, spent and happy and naked, in bed. Jaal’s hand is rubbing circles on her waist and his legs are tangled with hers, a pink and purple knot tying them tightly.

“At night or when we were on Meridian or the Nexus. I would sneak back onto the ship to finish it.” He chuckles, combing her hair through his fingers. “SAM would alert me when you were about to go back to the Tempest and I would run out.”

“Oh, Jaal.” She kisses the soft flesh under his chin, making him hum and shiver. Then she giggles. “I can’t believe I never heard you get up at night, though.”

“SAM would also make sure to let you sleep more… deeply.” He smiles sheepishly when she raises an eyebrow, stunned. “Well, you _do_ need more rest, anyway! And he didn’t completely shut off all your cognitive abilities, of course. You just slept more soundly than usual.”

“You two are adorable, you know that?”

Jaal grins, happy and pleased, while SAM replies with a polite (and satisfied?) “Thank you”.

Then Jaal’s hand moves between her legs again and her next words of love are lost in a sea of moans and giggles.

 

\- - - -

 

Aya is magnificent. Scott decides this after drinking another glass of _tavum_ at the _tavetaan_ with Liam and Drack and tasting the infamous angaran nutrient paste.

He likes it. It’s definitely much different from the food back home, but it’s nowhere as bad as Liam told him it was and his two squadmates – _they are in the same squad now!_ – can’t believe their eyes when he asks for a second portion.

Roaan too looks baffled, but then his mouth opens in that big, jovial angaran smile he has come to love so much and he lightly punches his arm, exclaiming: “You’ve got good taste, human!”

He even lets him taste a slice of fresh elmohk – it’s poignant, hard to chew, but also a bit _spicy_ and Scott loves it – and Liam and Drack stare at them so insistently, the angara pretends to be annoyed – he really isn’t – and gives them a slice too.

When Scott moves to pay him, he swats the hand on his omnitool away with a grunt.

“Don’t be ridiculous, it’s free. You don’t let good people pay.”

“But that means you never let your angara customers pay, Roaan.” Scott retorts with kindness and warmth and the angara looks surprised, then grateful for what he said, then even a bit touched.

Liam and Drack’s smiles are bigger than ever when he leaves them at the counter.

His next stop is at the Embassy and the asari and her human colleague there welcome him and give him all the information he wants, the one he couldn’t find on that offline version of the extranet they’ve got here in Andromeda.

Then he cautiously heads to the Resistance HQ. He has no idea whether Evfra and the other members will let him pass – he knows Chloe is allowed inside, but she is the Pathfinder and even if he’s her brother, he doesn’t have her same influence and power.

But the angara welcome him even there: if he is inside the city, then it must mean he is a trusted individual. Word about him is spreading anyway, so much that almost every angara he sees now turns to look at him or even smile at him.

It’s disorienting, at first, and he even feels a bit overwhelmed, hands sweating again, but then he notices how their eyes only contain curiosity, a good kind of amusement, and a lot of the same warmth Roaan had in his galaxy-like eyes.

He feels immediately better, relieved to the bones, and proceeds forward without accidents. He speaks to more than one angara and he never babbles; he even manages to crack some more stupid jokes and make them laugh.

He suddenly feels bad for his sister, who had to fight for their trust and was initially looked with distaste and fear. He has gotten it easy and their warm gazes and smiles help him feel stronger, less scared, less young.

He wouldn’t have been able to win their respect like she did, he thinks with a pang of pride and shame.

The Resistance HQ is as tidy and clean as the city, but it is clearly a military-run place and it reminds him of the Arcturus Station, of the barracks he spent years in, of the gun oil one could smell in them, of the stern orders and anxiety the Alliance soldiers constantly were subjected to.

Things are somewhat easier here, despite the kett: the angara’s bonds are stronger, sweeter, and they are fighting for their homes, not to protect a dirty station popular among pirates and thugs.

Also, now that the Archon is dead, their hope is blinding like the sun outside and fresher than the water flowing everywhere in the city; he can nearly feel their excitement thrum in the air or perhaps he really is feeling it, their electromagnetic abilities surprising him every passing minute.

Evfra is standing in front of a large, tall screen in a vast room, arms folded over his chest. His frown is still there on his scarred face and Scott starts to think it’s _always_ there, even when he sleeps.

Low whispers and excited murmurs follow him as he wanders around and takes everything in; two angara even stop their work to talk to him and thank him for his help – _I did nothing_ , he almost replies, but then he bites his tongue, knowing his sister wouldn’t want him to say that, and says instead “Thank you”.

That’s when Evfra notices him: his eyes move away from the giant screen and settle on him, piercing him like a hawk’s gaze.

Scott fidgets on the spot, not knowing what to expect from the man now that the Moshae isn’t here, but the leader of the Resistance simply grunts and goes back to bark orders, which are received with grace, calm, and respect.

“What planet is that?” Scott asks him after he finds the courage to approach him. Evfra briefly glances at him, before pointing at the sphere rotating on the screen.

“Havarl. Our homeplanet.”

“Oh. It looks different from the pictures I’ve seen.”

“This is merely a model to highlight the best zones to settle outposts. Now that the planet is stable again and the kett are disorganized, we can finally reclaim our lost ground.” Evfra lets out a short grunt, then adds: “We are following your sister’s example, trying to replicate the way she settled your outposts and secured the territory around them. Our AI is helping, too.”

“You have an AI?” Scott gasps, looking around. He sees a sort of _eye_ in a corner of the room, but he doesn’t like the way it’s _glaring_ at him.

“That’s the one.” Evfra confirms, sighing. “Blasted thing is stubborn like an adhi, but its calculations have been incredibly useful. So far.” He makes a weird face, as if he just tasted the sourest lemon in existence, then says quietly: “Your sister found it and gave it to us.”

Pride fills Scott again and he grins, moving closer to the angara.

“I didn’t know that! Where did she find it? Was it here? During a mission? What…”

“Why don’t you ask her?” Evfra starts typing something on his weird angaran omnitool, whose standard interface seems always to be that round, blue, elegant sphere. Scott would like to see how it works, exactly, but he doubts the angara would be willing to waste precious time for something so silly.

Not wanting to annoy him or offend him, he replies with a simple and kind “I will”, which sounds like a promise, like a “Once I know what happened, I’ll come back to pester you with more questions” and Evfra knows that, because the scowl on his face deepens.

It looks like there is a horizontal scar on his brow now.

“I still can’t believe you exist.” he says and Scott doesn’t know whether to feel offended or flattered.

“Uh… Thanks?”

He went for the latter, but Evfra evidently didn’t mean it like that.

“Jaal was supposed to keep me informed about the new aliens, but after saving the Moshae, his behavior changed. So I never heard anything about you.”

He taps something onto the omnitool, before raising his eyes towards the screen. “He started giving me less information and his messages were often brief or hastily written. I always had to hear or read stuff about your sister’s feats or the Initiative directly from her or through my other soldiers.”

Scott frowns, too. He doesn’t know Jaal well – _yet_ -, but he doesn’t look like the type to forget about his commander and the organization he so loyally worked for.

“Are you saying he… got disinterested in the Resistance?”

Evfra scoffs, but the sound isn’t rude or derisive. He closes his omnitool and turns to face Scott, arms folded over his chest again.

“No, I’m not saying that. He simply found what he was looking for and all his interest towards the aliens and his new squad became personal. So personal he shared only the essential with the Resistance.”

The hint of a smile curls one corner of Evfra’s mouth upwards, a sight to behold. “When it became clear that these new aliens were good people, his task on the Tempest was pretty much over. He stayed because he wanted to stay.”

“He fell in love with my sister.” Scott says, softly, and Evfra nods.

“Yes. He found his place at her side.” He makes a strange face and adds slowly, choosing every word: “He was – is – one of my best soldiers, but I’ve always known he wasn’t truly happy here. Too many expectations to meet, too little confidence to do so. He fought every day, shedding tears and blood, not only to help our people and survive, but also to carve his place here. He never succeeded at that.”

Scott swallows, a dull ache growing in his chest. That sounds terribly familiar and for a moment it’s like Evfra is talking about him. He shuffles his feet on the ground, embarrassed and confused, but the angara is looking at the giant screen again and doesn’t see him.

“The day the Moshae returned to us, I asked Jaal to report for reassignment. He was so _quick_ in telling me he needed – _needed_ – to stay with your sister. They weren’t together yet, at the time, but I could see something was growing between them.” He snorts, a non-malicious smirk making its way on his face. “I may look cold and distant, but I’m not blind to such things.”

Scott smiles and he is tempted to ask him more questions about Jaal, more details that might help him know his sister’s boyfriend better, but he isn’t sure Evfra would tell him so much. So he decides not to change topic and asks instead:

“That was when he stopped sending you official reports?”

“Yes. He wasn’t on duty anymore. He was part of the Resistance, he still is, but he is part of Ryder’s crew, too. If your sister asked him to accompany her back to the Milky Way, he would follow her without hesitation.” He lets out a dry, amused chuckle. “He would probably ask her to bring his family, too, but yes, he would follow her.”

Scott smiles and looks at the luminous dots on the glowing planet.

“I’m glad he is with her.” And he means it, he truly does.

Evfra turns to him again: his expression is stern, but not unkind, and when he speaks his voice is devoid of the harshness he used in the Repository.

“The Pathfinder and Jaal are very lucky to have each other.” He takes a deep breath and continues, slowly: “The angara and the humans are lucky to have each other.”

Warmth spreads in Scott’s heart and on his face and he beams at the angara, nodding. He thinks so too. He wasn’t so sure the previous day, but now…

“Why… uh… why are you telling me all this?” he asks, fidgeting, flattered by Evfra’s words and his attention – he’s got the impression he is not really a people person and perhaps he even wasn’t an _alien_ person.

He almost expects Evfra’s scowl and impatience to come back, but they don’t. He tightens his lips into a straight line and replies: “I realized I don’t know much about you aliens. Like I said, Jaal’s reports stopped arriving and now all he sends me are pictures, random information, or questions about the Resistance’s conditions and current missions.”

“You could go to the Repository or the Embassy.” Scott suggests, not understanding what the other man is trying to say. “Everything you need to know about us is there.”

Evfra frowns and he looks like himself again. He seems almost disappointed and Scott blushes, wondering if he upset him or said anything wrong.

“You told the Moshae you got out of your infirmary just yesterday. Is that correct?”

He nods quickly, fidgeting again.

“And that you learned everything you could about us using your… omnitool and the information your Initiative has about us and our worlds. Am I remembering it well?”

“Yes, you are.”

Evfra narrows his eyes and asks, almost hissing the words out: “So, tell me: did you learn everything there was to learn about us from that? Did you stroll in our city without any sense of wonder and surprise? Did you talk with Jaal and my people with absolute easiness?”

Scott’s cheeks burn and he looks down at his feet, feeling like a child again. Dad never reprimanded him and Chloe harshly, but he remembers his steel-like gaze when they did something wrong and he scolded them. Right now, he feels like he has been thrown back to those days.

“No.” he admits in the end, voice small. “I… I actually had some problems with all of this. It’s all so new and different and I’m not…”

“But now you are feeling better, right?”

“Yes.” He raises his head and Evfra’s frown is still there, but less menacing. “Yes, I’m better. Visiting Aya helped me a lot, because…” He sighs, realizing how stupid his statement before was. “Because I could finally see how you guys live and fight every day.”

“Exactly. You _experienced_ Aya and the angaran life here. You started to _know_ us.” Evfra grunts and looks away, glaring at the floor. “Many angara still don’t really know you aliens. They only heard about you or saw you in vids and pictures. Your first ambassadors were those you call exiles and the Embassy and the Repository aren’t enough to answer all our questions and really understand who our allies are.”

“So…” Scott stops, waiting for him to conclude. He doesn’t possess Chloe’s brilliance or Dad’s boldness, so he doesn’t dare assume what Evfra wants to say and achieve.

The angara is clearly happy to fill the gaps for him, because he explains curtly: “I want my people to know better yours. To really _know_ you. The kett will come to retaliate soon, stars only know from where, and we must be united.”

He points at a desk placed in front of a window and Scott understands it’s his, since it overlooks the entire room and its surface is almost completely covered by datapads and reports.

“We cannot fight together if we don’t know _how_ to fight together and _who_ we are fighting with.” Evfra continues. “I tried reading everything I could about you Milky Way aliens, but it’s not enough and many of my people are getting impatient and unhealthily curious too.”

Panic grows in Scott, burning bile making its way across his stomach until he is white like the candid walls of Aya. This conversation is getting too serious, too _professional_ , and he doesn’t know what to do. Chloe, _she_ would know what to do.

“You shouldn’t tell me these things. You should speak with Chloe, she is the Pathfinder, and I have the _awful_ impression that this is something _very_ serious and I really shouldn’t…”

“What, are you a child?” Evfra scoffs, glaring at him in that cold way that makes him stand still like a statue. “You are the Pathfinder’s brother and you are part of her crew. She also said you are a good soldier. That’s more than enough for me, so stay here and listen to what I have to say.”

Knowing his sister complimented him makes part of his panic die with a pitiful whimper – it’s like his panic attack is saying _welp, I tried_ -, but his anxiety is more stubborn than Dad and Mom fused together and he chews his lower lip until it’s red and bloody.

In the meantime, Evfra has moved near the window, hands behind his back, and doesn’t see how nervous he is.

“The kett fooled us. They pretended to be who they weren’t. They never showed interest in our culture, but they lowered our defenses with gifts and sweet words and we didn’t think about asking _them_ questions.”

He straightens his back, exhaling slowly.

“Now things are different. We want to ask you questions, not because we don’t trust you, but because we _do_. Because you showed respect for our culture first.” He stops, takes another deep breath, and concludes, rather begrudgingly: “I… We deeply appreciated that. We want to keep building this alliance.”

“I see.” Scott says, voice rough, even though he is still scared. Is Evfra going to ask him to do something? Is he going to give him some sort of task, believing him to be as good as Chloe or good enough to carry it on while she is so busy with her Pathfinder duties?

“It is strange, to have allies.” Evfra suddenly says, softly, a whisper that Scott nearly can’t hear. “Strange and scary, but also exciting. Your people’s presence here in Heleus gave us hope and I’m not quite familiar with that feeling.”

“Hope is what brought us here in Heleus.” Scott blurts out, feeling brave. “I’m glad we were able to share some of it with you, then.”

“Hah!”

It’s a bark, not really a laugh, but it’s more than he was expecting and when Evfra turns, his lips are curled into a smirk again.

“I will speak with our Governor.” he says and Scott starts trembling again. _Please, I’m not ready, don’t ask me to do anything, I would only ruin things, let Chloe handle this, please, please, please._

“Maybe we will open Aya to your civilians. Just a restricted, limited, small number, to avoid catching the kett’s attention, but it will be a start.”

“I… I saw some angara on Meridian and the Nexus.” He swallows nervously, thinking about those embarrassing encounters. “Chloe told me that some have moved on the station while our researchers are here. We took the reserved spots that would have been theirs.”

“Yes. That was also a kind, appreciated gesture. Angara and aliens swapped places to ensure everyone’s survival and satisfaction.” Evfra nods at the datapads on his desk. “But I’m talking about _civilian_ visits. Short journeys where both our people, even those who don’t fight and kill kett every day, can learn more about each other. Mothers, elders, children, scholars.”

He groans and Scott doesn’t know much about angara biology, but he is sure the other man is blushing.

“This was the Moshae’s idea, to be honest. I’m not sure I completely agree with her, but I know this is necessary. I know this will be useful.”

“Yes.” he agrees, knowing how curious and impatient someone can be after learning there is a new alien species around. In the angara’s case, there are _five_ and others will come in the future – their kids, moms, and grandpas must be going crazy with curiosity, especially after Chloe’s victory on Meridian.

They want to _meet_ their allies, not just see them through a screen or hear scraps of stories about them. Yes, Scott knows the feeling.

Speaking of _children_ , he hasn’t seen any in the city and that detail baffled him. Angara have large families: surely he should have seen some kids around, right?

He timidly points that out to Evfra, who furrows his brow again.

“The families live in other parts of the city. We restrict them from entering this one while too many aliens are here.”

“ _What?_ But the Embassy is here! Our researchers are living here too, what do you mean-”

“We take turns.” Evfra interrupts him, without really explaining it, causing Scott to grow even more confused. “Depending on the number of aliens in the city, only a certain number of kids can enter here. Precautionary measures.”

“But…”

“And since the number of aliens always _rises_ when the Tempest and shuttles from the Initiative come here, no child is ever allowed to be in this part of Aya in that case.” Evfra seems embarrassed, but maybe it’s just Scott’s impression. _He_ would be embarrassed as hell.

That’s why he hasn’t seen any angara kid while he was here. Long ago, Chloe said she wanted to see how angara babies looked like, so he assumes she never saw them either. Or maybe she did when she visited Jaal’s family…?

“When… When did you decide this?” he asks, hoping it was way before the Initiative gained the angara’s trust.

“Before our alliance was forged, of course.” _Phew._ “The Moshae plans to also fix this… situation.” Evfra briefly glances at him. Scott is sure he’s just pretending to be busy with those reports on his desk.

“The children and their families deserve to know more about the aliens who came to our home and helped us against the kett. We cannot control their curiosity anymore and it wouldn’t even be right to continue doing so.”

“There are families in the Cryo Bays of the Arks.” Scott says, wringing his hands. “With kids, too.”

If Evfra had eyebrows, he would raise one now, but the shift of muscles on his face is similar enough. Scott clears his throat, cursing himself for saying something so obvious.

“It would be nice to… see our kids and yours play all together, one day.”

“Hah!” That barked laugh again. “I’m sure your sister and Jaal will be the first ones to start that trend.”

Scott’s cheeks burn red, but when he tries to picture Chloe and Jaal playing with some angara children – for now, he just imagines them as mini angara -, his heart doesn’t weep in agony and worry, but it beats contently instead.

“Well, that wouldn’t be so bad.” he admits, a smile curling his chapped lips. He gasps and stares at the angara, blurting out: “Did you know angara and humans may be compatible?”

Evfra’s look is borderline murderous, but Scott bravely ignores it.

“If that’s true,” the angara grumbles, “you should tell your sister and Jaal to be careful in bed.”

Realization shines in his eyes and he grunts, shaking his head. “Or maybe you shouldn’t. I bet they would be happy to give life to a dozen of kids.”

“I…” Scott tries to imagine a litter of mini angara calling him ‘uncle’ and the thought doesn’t scare him as much as it would have done the day before.

“Maybe we should change topic.” Evfra flatly says.

“Yes, please.”

“Did you meet our Governor? I’m sure she is waiting for you.” He grunts, a low, annoyed sound. “I’m surprised she didn’t send anyone to fetch you.”

“There are still some parts of the city I haven’t visited.” Scott looks behind his shoulders, at the door. “I saw some stairs, just around the corner, and…”

“The infirmary and the training grounds. The Governor residence is on the opposite side of the city.” Then Evfra abruptly changes topic, like Scott feared: “Talk with your sister about what I told you. Give her the good news and let me know what you and your Initiative think about it.”

Alright, that’s easy. He can do that. He just has to bring a message, then Chloe, Tann, and the others will do the rest. He can’t fuck this up.

“I will.” he promises, then hurriedly adds: “And thank you. We really appreciate this.”

That was a good thing to say, right? Sincere, grateful, and kind like the angara. Evfra only grunts again, but he seems satisfied with it.

His gaze turns cold again, though, and he narrows his eyes, saying: “Don’t make me regret this, Ryder.”

“We won’t.” he promises, torn between the twisted desire to rub in his face all the good things Chloe and the Initiative did and the painful awareness of what the angara went through. He can’t really blame Evfra for still being so distant and wary, not when his scars and curt behavior tell him of the terrible things he must have endured.

He berates himself for even thinking about being so rude and repeats, louder: “We won’t, Evfra.”

“Good.” The angara narrows his eyes at him for one more second, then relaxes and focuses on the reports on his desk. “Now go. I have much to do.”

“Thank you for telling me those things, by the way.” Scott says before he is forced to leave and the other man acknowledges his words with a nod of his head.

“Take care of Jaal and Ryder.” he suddenly says, making him jump. He raises his eyes and Scott freezes on the spot, almost saluting.

“They are good people and they care about you.”

He melts and relaxes and he even manages to smile without looking like a complete fool.

“I know. Thank you, Evfra.” Then he heads towards the door, but before leaving, he turns to the angara and says loudly, waving at him: “Stay strong and clear! That’s what the Resistance says, right?”

Evfra harrumphs, glaring at him, and Scott exits the room, laughing, relieved to have been assigned a simple, but useful task, the first since he went back into full service.

He looks around and uses his imagination to fill the street with families and children playing together. His heart makes the next step towards utter peace.

Just as he is about to walk down the stairs leading to the infirmary, a hand touches his shoulder and he turns, standing face to face with the cheerful face of an angara.

“Scott Ryder?” he asks, showing all his blunt teeth with a huge smile.

“Y-Yes?”

“I’m Enroh Bosaan, counselor of the Governor.” His smile turns into a full, blinding grin. “And a relative of Jaal Ama Darav.”

 _Oh_.

His first meeting with the family. He is gonna faint.

“Uh… Ah…” _Please, hands, don’t start sweating now._ “H-Hello! Nice to meet you.”

He is about to greet him in the angaran way, when Enroh pats his back and slides an arm around his shoulder, oozing joy and excitement, _literally_ , because Scott’s hair stands up and his skin tingles due to the strong electromagnetic field.

“Come!” Enroh exclaims, leading him back to the market. “We have much to talk about!”

_Oh boy._

 

\- - - -

 

_Dear mother,_

_Chloe’s brother, Scott, has finally recovered and he’s now part of the Tempest crew! He still needs some time to get completely better and forget the Archon’s torture, or at least try to. We are currently on Aya and we will set course to Havarl in a few weeks._

_I know you are impatient to meet him, but please, don’t worry. We will be there soon._

_Chloe sends you a hug and a kiss! Enroh says hi._

_Stars guide you,_

_Jaal_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I decided to let Scott explore Aya a little more in this chapter! Also, I wanted to find an in-game reason to explain why there are no kids in Aya: the city looks big and there are those beautiful buildings with the colored roofs shaped like sails, so I guess those might be the residential parts. However, due to the bad experience with the kett, the angara decided to not let the family and kids out when there are too many aliens strolling in the marketplace - now that they know the Initiative is good, that precautionary rule can be removed.
> 
> I also wanted Evfra and Scott to share the lack of information about each other's species and world: Scott was in a coma and missed a lot, Evfra had too much to think about and he didn't trust the Initiative enough, at the start, to care about it and the cultures it brought in Heleus. So now that there is this relative peace, they want to know their allies better - basically following Jaal and Chloe's steps, even if much later.
> 
> Hopefully, Sahuna will be in the next chapter, but first Scott will have to get used to Heleus, apologize to Jaal, and learn that his sister just got officially engaged :'D
> 
> By the way, here is [a commission](http://lafaiette.tumblr.com/post/159800716940/mamaluciscaelum-made-this-gorgeous-commission-for) that [mamaluciscaelum](http://mamaluciscaelum.tumblr.com/) did for me, depicting Chloe and Jaal eating ice cream on Meridian/the Nexus, Chloe wearing the Rofjinn Jaal made for her.


	6. Chapter 6

Little by little, the crew gets back on the ship. Aya’s sun is setting, the air is getting colder, and everyone’s belly is empty, so each squadmate returns to the Tempest, hoping there will be good stuff to eat today.

After their long hours of passion and lovemaking, Jaal and Chloe moved to the crew quarters, preparing coffee for the human members of the crew – and Kallo, who adores it – and hoping Scott had a good time.

“Already here, Ryder?” Cora asks when she sees them, then she chuckles and Peebee whistles behind her. “Oh, I get it. You’ve been here for _some time_ , right?”

“True!” Jaal confirms without hesitation, his bioelectricity still running fast and wild. Chloe blushes and nods with a smile, groaning when Peebee whistles again and Drack shouts from the corridor something like “I wish I still had your stamina, kids”.

Scott is the last one to come back, carrying a small bag under his arm and bigger bags under his eyes. He is mortally pale like the previous day and he looks like he ran all the way to the ship without taking a breath.

“Oh, Scott! Did you have fun?” Suvi asks from her seat before she can see his face. Kallo, the one who can see the airlock from where he is, immediately notices something is wrong and tells her with his eyes and a twitch of his mouth.

“Yes.” Scott answers simply. His voice is unnaturally calm and flat, maybe a bit rough, as if he cleared his throat a lot. Suvi sees him now and her mouth forms a ‘o’.

“Is… Is everything alright?” she finds the courage to ask and his answer is, once again, that unexpressive “yes”.

Then he’s gone, headed to where the others currently are. Cora and Vetra are complaining loudly in the crew quarters because Chloe didn’t let them see her new hairstyle, so she and Jaal promise them they will redo it now to show them.

“Don’t tell me you know how to braid human hair, Jaal. That stuff is a mystery to me.” Vetra says, snorting when Jaal’s answer is a happy, confident grin.

“He made my ponytail!” Chloe proudly says, sitting down to allow him to better style her hair. “And it didn’t even take him too many tries!”

“No offense, but your ponytail is a mess.” Cora jokingly retorts, folding her arms and leaning against the wall. Jaal harrumphs, but doesn’t reply, too busy with Chloe’s hair and her hairpin, but his girlfriend hurries to defend his valiant effort.

“That’s…”

“It’s because they rolled under the sheets for hours, Cora.” Vetra chuckles, earning herself another groan from Chloe and an affirmative sound from Jaal.

“True. My bad, guys. I bet it was an awesome ponytail.”

“You bet it was.” Chloe grumbles, pouting at her friends, while Jaal mumbles something about the correct way to close the hairpin.

Scott steps into the room quietly, but he is sending so many off vibes it’s like he has a powerful bioelectric current running crazy in his body, too.

Vetra’s sharp eyes and Cora’s expert gaze immediately see something isn’t right and the turian makes a low sound with her throat to make Chloe and Jaal look in their direction: the Pathfinder is showing her boyfriend how to close the hairpin, while he listens intently, so they didn’t see Scott come in.

They turn and gasp. Scott is staring at them, holding the round bag as if it’s a bomb he is ready to throw at them.

One of his eyes is twitching again.

“Scott!” Chloe beams at him, although she can see he is not feeling well. “How… How did it go?”

“Fine.” he replies, but he keeps staring at Jaal, who panics and quickly pulls away his hands from Chloe’s hair, standing there with a sheepish, timid expression on his face.

“What’s in the bag? Did you buy something?” Cora asks, hoping to break the ice and improve the mood, but Scott’s hold tightens around the round object and he flinches.

“No. Yes. It’s… it’s a surprise.”

Jaal tenses up. He is pretty sure it’s a bomb, now.

Before they can ask more, Scott goes to the wardrobe and puts the mysterious bag inside, hiding it behind his helmet and two spare shirts, hoping it will stop the other crewmates from getting too curious.

“Isn’t Aya beautiful?” Chloe tries again, wringing her hands on her lap, and her brother makes an affirmative sound, nodding, before closing the wardrobe and turning back to her and Jaal.

He still looks so… haunted. Antsy, even. Is he drunk? Is he _high_? What happened while he was in the city?

He frowns, spotting the hairpin Jaal is holding like it’s a delicate glass flower.

“You are doing it wrong.” he says, walking to him with quick, large strides. “Hold her hair like this.”

He starts showing him how to redo the style Chloe had before and his movements are as precise as his sister’s, thanks to the countless times he helped her braid her hair and the hair of her dolls when they played together as kids.

While Chloe reminisces about those times and Vetra and Cora watch the scene with interest, Jaal records every gesture in his mind, listening intently to Scott’s stern, but clear explanation.

“Lower your electromagnetism.” he tells him, seeing Chloe’s hair rise slightly every time Jaal’s hands move near it. “Grab this lock of hair tightly and put it here. See? Then grab the other, check whether there are loose strands and then put the hairpin here.”

“You’re good at this.” Jaal says, wonder and surprise in his voice and on his face, and Scott grunts, removing the hairpin and loosing Chloe’s hair to make him try by himself.

“We used to play together with my dolls.” Chloe chuckles. “And when Mom was too busy to do my hair, Scott helped me.”

“Aw, Sid and I did the same. We helped each other with our fringes.”

“… Turians style their fringes?” Cora asks, confused, and Vetra proceeds to explain the wonders of lucid and colored oils which improve the looks of every self-respecting turian.

Chloe and Jaal would listen to them if they could, but Scott has caught their attention and demands they listen to him while he shows the angara how to close the small hairpin for the third time.

“Scott, it’s not that important-” she tries to say, but both her boyfriend and her brother interrupts her at the same time, saying in unison: “It is!”

They share a look – Jaal is panicking again, while Scott is being driven forward by sheer stubbornness and that weird irritability that seems to be directed at the whole world.

“It’s not that bad.” he says in the end, looking at Chloe’s hand. Next to him, Jaal fidgets nervously. “You need to be careful with the hair, though. Don’t tug at it…”

“Of course!”

“And be careful with the knots. She doesn’t brush it often.”

“Hey!”

“Understood. I will.” Jaal finally smiles again and finds the courage to touch the human’s arm. “Thank you, Scott. I appreciate this.”

“Scott.” Chloe gets up from the chair and turns to him, a worried light in her eyes. “What is this about?”

“I just thought your boyfriend would need to know how to braid your hair.” He shuffles his feet on the floor, clearing his throat. “It could be useful in the future, too.”

“In the future…?”

“You know… for kids and stuff.” He avoids looking at them in the eyes and even Cora and Vetra have fallen silent.

Upset by that sudden silence – which is broken only by the soft humming of the ship and Liam and Gil’s argument far away -, he sighs and continues, speaking like there is a sour lemon in his mouth:

“What if you two adopt a little human girl and Jaal doesn’t know how to braid her hair? Better learn now than later, so she won’t have to ask only Chloe for help.”

The silence stretches on, then Jaal lightens up like Kallo’s console and wraps his large arms around Scott, even lifting him a bit from the ground.

“Brother!” he roars happily, making his ears ring. “Thank you so much!”

“Oh, Scott.” Chloe is smiling at them and that’s definitely a veil of tears shimmering in her eyes. Then she giggles, shaking her head. “That’s a little too soon, though, don’t you think?”

“Maybe.” he croaks from above Jaal’s shoulder, patting awkwardly his back. She can see his eyes, though, and the look in them is still puzzling, undecipherable. “But at least he will be prepared in time.”

He blushes when Vetra lets out a fond “aww” and Cora smiles at the funny scene before her.

“You are a wonderful man, Scott Ryder!” Jaal insists, swaying him in his embrace. “The kindest of people!” And Scott’s blush gets worse at that and something akin to guilt flashes in his eyes.

Jaal slightly pulls away to look at him and he adds seriously: “After Chloe, of course.”

“Of course.” He cracks a small smile at that, then he groans when the angara goes back to hugging him, his feet still dangling midair.

Chloe tries to convince her boyfriend to put him down, giggling, when Gil calls from the comms, sounding particularly annoyed.

“Guys, does anyone want to switch cooking turns with me? I have to check some things with the engine and…”

“Gil.” Chloe says sternly, frowning at the ceiling. “This is the third time you miss your turn and let someone else cook.”

“I know, I know! But I swear, Ryder, there is this tiny, little sound that has been bothering me for _days_ and I’m going crazy.”

“Hey, don’t look at me.” Vetra says, raising her hands. “Too busy today.”

“And you all know I suck at cooking.” Cora sighs, eyeing her turian friend with shame. “I burned your dinner last time, Vetra…”

“Well, Drack and Kallo cooked for us yesterday, so we can’t ask them again.” Chloe rubs her neck, knowing her status would allow her to be the last in line or to be kept out of these tasks entirely, but it never felt right and she genuinely likes to cook for her crew.

Especially if Jaal is there to help her.

“What about Suvi?” he asks innocently. He is still holding Scott as if he is a plush or a puppy and her brother completely gave up, now hanging resignedly and just kicking the air with his feet when he feels like it.

Trying not to laugh at the adorable, hilarious sight, Chloe shakes her head.

“Suvi’s cooking style is… well…”

“Those angaran snacks she prepared were pretty good!”

“Yes, but her recipes might be too much for Scott, right now.”

“Liam?” Vetra asks via comms. “Can you cook for us today? Gil just forfeited his turn.”

“I _never_ forfeit anything!” the engineer gasps outraged, but Liam ignores him and his groan resonates in the small room.

“I know, guys. Sorry, but I pass. I just found this pre-space travel movie from Earth that…”

“Alright, nevermind.” Chloe sighs, closing the comms. She smiles at Jaal and pats his back. “Looks like it’s our turn again, Darling One. Do you want to-”

“I’ll cook with Jaal.” Scott intervenes suddenly, still trapped in his hug. Jaal is so stunned he is able to free himself and get his feet back on the floor.

“I’ll cook with him.” he repeats, looking at his sister straight in the eyes, while she gawks at him. Then he turns to Jaal and asks briskly: “Would that be alright?”

Jaal babbles something, then looks at Chloe, then at Scott again. He grins, happy like a child, and nods quickly.

“Of course! I’d be more than happy to…”

“Good. Let’s go, then.”

Everyone is too shocked to say anything and Chloe watches in silence as her brother and her boyfriend – who kisses her forehead before following him – leave the room.

Then she snaps out of it and rushes to the corridor, calling: “Remember to cook something for Vetra, too!”

“Are you sure this is a good idea?” Cora says quietly, moving next to her as the door of the galley closes. “Scott doesn’t look so well, today.”

“I… I’m not sure.” she admits, hoping neither of them will get offended or, worse, hurt.

“Let’s just hope they won’t set fire to the kitchen.” Vetra deadpans, scratching her mandible.

 

\- - - -

 

Jaal fidgets nervously in the small room, watching Scott open every cabinet and the fridge to check their contents. He doesn’t know what he’s looking for, exactly, but he’s ready to help him with anything.

He just has to ask. Talk to him. Which seems to be a pretty hard thing to do for the young man.

Jaal’s heart whimpers sadly.

He is supposed to get along well with his _taoshay_ ’s brother, his future brother-in-law! This situation upsets him terribly and he doesn’t want Chloe to suffer because of it.

If she is right, then Scott doesn’t really _hate_ him. He is just scared – and maybe a bit jealous too, even though Jaal can’t really understand _why_ -, but he’s not angry.

To be honest, though, he _looks_ angry right now. Maybe not at him, but definitely at _someone_ or _something_.

What happened in Aya? Did someone offend him? Why didn’t he call, then?

Jaal isn’t used to keeping his thoughts and worries to himself. He has to express them somehow, let them out, but he doesn’t want to bother Scott or make him lash out at him. He hopes he will decide to speak to him about it when he’s ready – or maybe with Chloe, it would be the same.

He just wants his brother-in-law to be happy. He’s part of the family, too, and Jaal wishes with all his heart that he will be able to understand it and believe it someday.

While he was busy thinking and worrying himself over these matters, Scott took out some boxes and cans from the pantry and he’s now checking their labels with an appreciative hum.

“Good, we have everything we need.” he suddenly announces and Jaal straightens up, like a saluting soldier, and asks quickly: “What do you want to make?”

“Do you know what Chloe’s favorite dish is?”

Jaal opens his mouth to answer, smiling, but all his certainty crumbles as he realizes _he doesn’t really know_. He saw Chloe eat almost everything, but she never expressed her strong opinions about one dish or another.

He knows for sure she doesn’t like those canned beans Vetra brought onboard and, like almost all aliens, she thinks the angaran nutrient paste tastes weird, but that’s it. Everything else they had at lunch or dinner, she ate without complaints, just praising the cook who had prepared it or the ingredients.

“I… I don’t know.” he admits, feeling terrible. What kind of boyfriend is he? What kind of mate doesn’t even know something as simple as that about their loved one?

He sniffles, tears of shame and guilt threatening to run down his cheeks; Scott’s unreadable, stern mask cracks and he sighs, allowing himself to smile.

“Don’t worry, Jaal. That’s why we are here.”

Jaal sniffles again and smiles back, glad that it was Scott who asked him this and not Liam or someone else. He is happy he had to share this horrible truth with his brother-in-law; also, he’s going to help him!

“She _loves_ spaghetti. And when I say ‘love’, I really mean it.”

He shows him a box where strange yellow strands are shown: Scott opens it and Jaal discovers those strands are hard and long. He wonders what they are made of.

Scott explains it to him – and they discover together that Aya and the Initiative developed together a flour, from which this new _spaghetti_ was made -, then he opens a can, which contains a red pulp.

“Fruit…?” Jaal asks tentatively.

“Vegetables. We call them tomatoes. We will use them to make a sauce.”

“So, Chloe’s favorite dish is… _pasta_ , mixed with this red sauce?” Jaal dips a finger into the can and tastes the tomatoes, smacking his lips. “A peculiar taste, but they are sweet. I can see why she likes it.”

“I’ll prepare the dextro version for Vetra.” Jaal’s anxiety spikes up at that. Not only he’s sharing the same room with his jealous brother-in-law who is going through a difficult time also because of him, but he will have to prepare this dish – his Darling One’s favorite food! – all by himself.

“Wait, I never…!”

“I’ll guide you step by step.” Scott promises me, moving past him to take the dextro ingredients. He shoots him a pointed look. “You’ll learn faster this way. Also, it wouldn’t be the same if I cooked it, don’t you think?”

Jaal bites his lip, looking at the open box of spaghetti and the cans of tomato sauce with something akin to horror and interest. He isn’t a good cook – very few angara are, because their diet is simple, based on nutrient paste and fruits most of the time. There is no need to take a lot of ingredients and mix them in various ways on a stove, because their nutrient paste gives them all the energy and taste they need to go on. Also, resources are scarce and they need to feed everyone.

He saw how different things are for the Milky Way aliens. They rely on lyophilized and dried food, but now that the situation on the Nexus and the Arks is finally getting better, they have started producing natural food too, the same one they used to eat in their old galaxy.

Every time he cooks with Chloe, he can see how relaxed she is; she moves around the kitchen with much more easiness, knowing perfectly how long a pan or pot can remain on the stove, how to cut a piece of something, how to open this or that. He follows her instructions or tells her the different characteristics and flavors of the angaran fruits she wants to try and add to the meal.

Even though she insisted many times, he rarely tried to cook and use the stuff in the cabinets. He is interested in them, in their technology – the stove looks particularly intriguing -, but he is always afraid of breaking something, wasting ingredients, or making a disaster.

But… he would cook for Chloe, now. He would prepare her favorite food, something that would undoubtedly make her very happy and remind her of her old home.

Knowing that, he can face anything, even the wonders and mysteries of the culinary world.

“Alright.” he says, slowly unclasping his Rofjinn, folding it neatly, and placing it on the seat of the galley. He returns to the counter, where Scott is waiting for him, and nods, his face solemn and serious as if they are about to infiltrate a kett base.

“I’m ready.”

“Good.” Scott laughs, the first time since he came back from Aya. “First of all, take a pot from the cabinet and fill it with water. Preferably warm water, so it will boil faster.”

From then on, he mood in the room gets more amicable: Scott is a patient teacher and Jaal learns quickly, his expert hands knowing how to be delicate and precise, even with these weird tools and this new food.

Scott starts telling him about Chloe and her other favorite things. Jaal already knows about most of them, but he’s surprised to hear she also likes make-up - those colors for the face he saw some human people wear.

“She is just too lazy to put it on.” Scott laughs, then he proceeds to tell him how much she likes dogs, too, a kind of pet from Earth which comes in different breeds. Jaal wonders if she would like to have a pet kaerkyn, a companion for her hamster, which she named Alfit II to honor his old friend.

“Tell me what other food she likes.” he tells Scott as he gingerly drops the _spaghetti_ into the boiling pot, while the tomato sauce simmers in a smaller pan. “Maybe I can find it or find something similar enough.”

He smiles, moving the pasta around in the water like Scott instructed him to do. “I already know she loves sweet stuff.”

“Oh, yeah, she adores it! Chocolate, candies, tarts, pies…”

“My mother made a pie for her, using angaran fruits. Chloe said it was excellent.” He says this with pride and happiness and his chest swells a bit. Then he beams at Scott, who is dealing with the dextro sauce for Vetra’s dish.

“She will make one for you, too!”

Scott smiles at that and he looks genuinely touched. Then his smile fades away and he gets embarrassed.

“I… I wanted to apologize.” he says, observing the dextro sauce in the pan, which is much darker than the levo one, almost black. “For yesterday. I was very rude.”

“Don’t worry, brother.” Jaal hopes he won’t get mad at him for using that word. He doesn’t, so he continues: “I understand. I was too overwhelming and you just had gotten out of the infirmary.”

“I said bad things and there is no excuse for that. I have to do better, because…” Scott turns to him and smiles, a warm and friendly smile that makes Jaal grins at him. “Because you are Chloe’s _taoshay_ and part of the Ryder family now.”

“Brother!”

Jaal instinctively throws his arms around him and lifts him from the ground again, but this time the human laughs and pats his back with more enthusiasm than before.

“Now, come on.” he says as Jaal delicately puts him down. “I still have to tell you the other dishes she likes.”

“I appreciate this immensely. I know much about her tastes, but I still had to learn about the details.” Jaal hesitates, then blurts out, curiosity winning over caution: “Why are you telling me all this, by the way?”

“I told you earlier. This will be useful for the future.”

“So… You would be happy if…” Jaal clears his throat, knowing he shouldn’t say too much, but unable to refrain himself. “You would be happy if things got even more serious…?”

There is a knowing look on Scott’s face now and Jaal gulps, afraid of what it might mean.

But there is also kindness and the human nods, crinkles forming near his eyes and mouth as he smiles.

“Yeah. I wouldn’t be against it. I can see how happy you make her.”

“And you… you aren’t jealous?” Jaal makes an embarrassed sound when Scott raises his eyebrows and stares at him, surprised. “Chloe said human fathers and brothers can get jealous when…”

“Oh, God. No, Jaal, no. My sister can do whatever she wants.” Scott checks Vetra’s sauce to make sure it’s cooking without problems. “Yesterday I thought you were a pretty weird guy, I admit it, but that’s just because I had just gotten out of the Cryo Bay and everything was strange and new and those angara I met…”

“You met other angara before me?”

Scott flinches as if burned, then sighs.

“Yeah. It didn’t go well. I didn’t know what to say or do and I acted like a fool.”

He turns to Jaal after stirring the sauce and firmly grasps his forearm.

“But now I know you are a good man. You love my sister and she loves you and you are happy with each other. That’s what matters. And I’m…” He takes a deep breath, looking deep into Jaal’s eyes. “And I’m proud of you both.”

Jaal sniffles, tears punctually coming back, and Scott chuckles, patting his arm.

“So don’t worry about me and…”

“But you are scared.” Jaal suddenly says, pushing back his tears. “You fear you will be left behind.”

Scott gets quiet at that and he keeps stirring the sauce with a somber expression, causing Jaal to sigh and rest a hand on his shoulder.

“Brother. Chloe and I will never leave you alone.”

Scott takes a shaky breath. “I may not even keep being part of the Tempest crew. Tann said…”

“Even if we get separated, we will never abandon you. We will always be here for you, with our hearts and souls.” He bumps his hand on his chest, making Scott smile. “Our paths may be different and lead us to different destinations, but we will always be family. And Chloe will always be your sister.”

There are tears in Scott’s eyes too now and he looks up at Jaal with a big, goofy smile, similar to the ones he gives his sister.

Then he raises his arm and bumps his fist against Jaal’s shoulder, greeting him in the angaran way for the first time. Holding back a happy sob, Jaal returns the gesture.

“Thank you.” Scott says, before lowering his arm. His smile gets bigger. “I spoke with Enroh on Aya. He told me you intend to propose to Chloe.”

Jaal’s blood turns into ice and he blushes.

Enroh! They forgot about Enroh!

What is he supposed to say now? Scott doesn’t look upset, on the contrary, he looks happier than ever and there are finally calmness and joy in his eyes.

But Chloe thought this news would still be too much for him: Jaal can’t tell her brother such an important thing without her permission, without letting her know first. It would be like betraying her trust and the decision they made together.

Also, Scott could really feel bad if he told him he already proposed to his sister, that he did it without even waiting for him to get better or get more familiar with his new life and this new situation. Right now, Scott only knows he has _intention_ of doing so. There is a big difference.

“I… Uh…”

“He said something about giving her your family’s Rofjinn.” Scott continues, nodding at the levo sauce, silently telling him to stir it. Jaal hurries to do so, also to have an excuse to avoid looking at him. “And that your family is very excited.”

“Yes. Yes, that is right.”

“Good. If you need help with something, let me know.” Scott grins at him. “Chloe is a huge romantic, you know? Liam and I could help you set the right mood!”

Jaal swallows a bitter lump, part of him panicking because he now fears his proposal was silly and not romantic enough, the other panicking because he can’t lie for shit.

“I… Thank you, brother.” He smiles at Scott or at least he tries to. “I’ll keep it in mind.”

Scott gives him a scared look. “By the way… you aren’t getting married _now,_ right?”

“Oh, no! The proposal will only make things official. The marriage can take place many years later, if the couple prefer so.”

Scott lets out a relieved sigh, but his joy is still there, honest and pure. He smiles at Jaal again.

“Thank you for waiting to tell her. Enroh told me you were very impatient and excited, that you were supposed to ask her yesterday or even earlier, but you didn’t.”

 _Oh, stars_.

“And I know it doesn’t concern me directly, but…” Scott pats his arm again, his goofy, cheerful smile finally giving some color back to his cheeks. “I appreciate it, Jaal. Chloe is the only family I’ve left, without including mom… and SAM, I suppose.”

“You…” Jaal swallows, his bioelectricity going crazy. Scott’s hair rises up as a result, but he doesn’t notice yet. “You are welcome.”

“So I’m glad I’ll be here for this. For you two. It… It feels good. It feels right.”

Jaal’s heart threatens to burst into million pieces.

“When are we going to visit your family, by the way? Chloe told me that your true mother is eager to meet me.” Scott looks excited and even a bit timid. “I… I would be happy to meet her, too.”

That makes Jaal feel better for a moment, but then he thinks that a visit to his family house would only make a mess, now: either he tells his family that Chloe accepted his proposal (letting Scott know he lied) or he pretends he never asked her, causing his mothers to get angry at him and Scott to insist about finding more ideas for the proposal, which he couldn’t refuse without offending him or hurting him.

“Well…” He tries to buy time. “Chloe wanted you to see the Initiative outposts before going to Havarl.”

Scott lightens up, his curiosity shining clear on his face.

“I saw pictures of them while I was in the Cryo Bay! She did an amazing job!”

Jaal sighs relieved, opening his mouth to compliment Chloe’s abilities and brilliance, when Scott shakes his head and continues: “But no, it would be rude to make your mother wait. I’ll ask Chloe if we can go to Havarl now.”

 _Skkut_.

They have to tell him _now_. Even if he will be shocked and a bit hurt at first, it will always be better than finding it out later. Truth is always preferable to lies and omissions.

“I’m sure my mothers and my siblings will be happy to meet you.” Jaal says, giving him a shaky smile.

He is torn between relief for having finally started a good friendship with Scott and the suffocating fear of ruining it. And if he ruins it, Chloe will suffer, and if Chloe suffers…

The mere idea makes him want to curl on the ground and weep.

“Great!” Scott looks a bit nervous and there is a mixture of different emotions on his face - happiness, excitement, anxiety, but he is still stirring the sauce and the dextro pasta with a huge smile.

“Now, let me tell you what food Chloe is allergic to. It will be important for when you’ll be married.”

Jaal focuses all his attention on Scott’s words, agreeing that it’s extremely important, but he can’t wait for dinner to end so he will be able to talk with his Darling One.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologize for the short length! I had some health issues and I really didn't have the energy to write more, but I wanted to update ;_; I think I will keep my chapters a bit shorter than usual for now, so they won't take a toll on me. 
> 
> At least Scott and Jaal are finally getting along! Although I'm not sure how Scott will react, once he learns the proposal already took place :'D


	7. Chapter 7

The look in Chloe’s eyes when she sees what he and Scott prepared for dinner is everything he needs to feel better, but the nagging thought of his future brother-in-law finding out he lied to him is enough to make feel Jaal antsy and nervous for the whole evening.

His heart swells with love and pride whenever he looks at Chloe, smiling and squealing happily at her _spaghetti_ , but blood freezes in his veins and a deep sense of guilt burns the pit of his stomach whenever he turns to Scott and talks with him.

He is much friendlier, now, and everyone notices the different behavior; he jokes, smiles, laughs, and grins without pause and the affection in his eyes is genuine and warm.

Jaal would laugh and hug him a lot, if only he didn’t feel so disgusting.

Chloe, of course, notices _his_ different, puzzling behavior and she even elbows him, shooting him a confused look, when he laughs awkwardly at one of Scott’s jokes, truth threatening to spill from his lips any moment now.

“Jaal.” she whispers while everyone is busy studying Vetra’s weird green pasta. “Honey, what’s wrong?”

“Nothing!” he lies – _again_ -, but she knows him too well and he sucks at lying, so her flat, unimpressed face doesn’t really surprise him.

“I…” He swallows, glancing at Scott, who is laughing with Kallo about the sauce on Vetra’s dish. “We need to talk, Darling One. I think I made a mess.”

She looks down at her plate, believing he’s referring to the dinner he and Scott made, but when he shakes his head and nods at her brother, her eyes widen.

“But…! He looks so happy! He’s treating you so nicely!”

“That’s the problem!”

Her eyebrows rise so much they almost touch her hairline. She looks at him as if he’s gone made.

“Honey.” she says simply, asking for an explanation, and Jaal feels like crying. He wants to talk to her _now_. He _needs_ to.

“It’s… It’s about my proposal.”

Just then, Scott hands him and Chloe a bottle Drack has taken out from somewhere.

“Look what Drack and Vetra found on the Nexus! Real Italian wine from Earth!”

Chloe goes back to her happy, cheerful self, but Jaal can see the light in her eyes is dimmer than before, partially covered by the new worries he just gave her.

He feels worse, now, and his guilt increases, together with the urge to cry and vent out.

Thankfully, everyone is so enamored with Scott’s sudden, unexpected, but welcomed friendliness and positivity that nobody really pays attention to him and his nervous antics.

So when dinner finally ends and Scott offers his help to Liam to clean the kitchen, he and Chloe are free to get back to their room and talk.

As soon as the door hisses close, he explodes.

“He thinks I haven’t proposed to you yet! He thinks we decided to wait to respect him and he thanked me for doing so and now he wants to meet my true mother and she will think I haven’t asked you yet or that you refused and…”

“Jaal!” She takes his hands and urges him to take a deep breath and calm down, breathing in and out slowly with him. “There. Better?”

“Darling One.” he whines, resting his forehead against hers and closing his eyes. “What should we do?”

“Well…” She sighs, rubbing small circles on his broad hands, her way to help him relax since she can’t use bioelectricity. “How did he learn about your intention to propose to me, first of all?”

“From Enroh. He met him on Aya.”

“Shit.”

“I’m not good at lying, Darling One.” Jaal is panicking again and he lets her hands go to walk aimlessly around the room, his bright Rofjinn fluttering behind him like a heavy veil full of worries and fears following him everywhere. “He will understand something isn’t right and then I will spill out everything and he will hate me and he will argue with you and…”

“Jaal.” Chloe approaches him again and takes him to the couch, making him sit down before sitting down at his side. “Sweetheart, don’t worry. I know Scott, he will be surprised at first, but then…”

“No, he won’t take it well. I saw his face, I heard his voice when he thanked me for waiting.” He wraps his arms around her, looking for physical contact, and she does the same, pressing her lips on his soft neck.

“He will get mad. Maybe…” Jaal takes a deep breath, cursing his past self. “Maybe I should have said the truth then. Now I’ll sound sly and wicked and…”

“No. No, you won’t, Jaal. He will _understand_.” She places a hand on his cheek, looking straight into his nebula-like eyes. “Yes, he will probably get a little mad at first, but then he will be happy for us.” She grins. “I told you he wasn’t jealous, just scared. Did you see what happened today?”

“Yes, but if we tell him the truth, he will go back to his old self.” Jaal sniffles, pouting at the floor. Then he gasps and adds, suddenly remembering: “He said he wants to help me find a good way to propose to you! A romantic way! I could pretend…”

“Jaal, you just admitted you suck at lying and you are _right_. You really aren’t good at it.” Chloe chuckles and he can’t understand how she can stay so calm in a moment like this. “Can you imagine yourself _pretending_ to propose to me for the first time? You wouldn’t be able to hide your emotions, the fact that you already know what my answer is!”

Jaal makes a low sound of despair and hides his face in the crook of her neck.

“I’d like to propose to you again, though.” he says quietly, stroking his hands up and down her back. “I fear my request wasn’t very romantic, not as much as you would have liked. I… I was just very impatient and scared and…”

“I _loved_ your proposal, Jaal!”

“Yes, but…”

“And I don’t want to complicate things. You don’t have to propose to me again just to make Scott happy. The truth would come out, sooner or later, and that would be even worse.”

She smiles at him and he seems to calm down, smiling back at her with stars in his eyes.

“We will talk to him now, alright? And then we will set course for Havarl, since he wants to meet Sahuna so badly now.”

“Yes, absolutely! He seemed very eager.” Jaal clears his throat, blushes, and asks with an adorably timid smile: “So… you will wear the Rofjinn, then?”

“Of course! I can’t wait to show it to everyone!”

He laughs, taking her into his arms again, and says softly: “I’ll make one for Scott and your mom, too.”

“Remember Liam, too. He will probably refuse to talk to you for the whole day, once he sees you made a Rofjinn for me first.”

“You and your family come first!” he exclaims, looking at her with a solemn face. “He will surely understand that!”

“Probably, yeah.” Chloe gives him an amused smile, raising an eyebrow. “Looks like we will be quite busy, trying to make all these people understand something.”

“I’m scared.” Jaal admits. “Not of Liam’s reaction, because I know how aliens joke, now.” He nuzzles her nose, sighing. “I’m scared of Scott’s reaction. I don’t want to ruin anything, my love.”

“You won’t. We won’t. Everything will be fine, we just need to be more tactful than usual.”

She pats his thigh, kisses him, and then she gets up, nodding at his omnitool.

“Tell Sahuna plans have changed and that we will visit her soon. I’m going to bring Scott here.”

“Stars…” Jaal takes a deep breath, panicking again. “He will hate me again.”

“He _never_ hated you, Jaal.” she chuckles, kissing him again, and he pouts.

“Then he will hate me _now_.”

“Trust me.” she says, hugging him. She is standing, while he’s still sitting on the couch, so his face is pressed against her chest and he makes a happy sound.

“He’s gonna understand.” she promises with a huge smile and he believes her.

 

\- - - -

 

Her smile disappears as soon as she steps into the corridor.

Scott _is_ going to understand, she is sure of that. The problem is _when_. Because she also knows that he will get somewhat angry, offended and scared by this life flowing quickly past him, not even giving him time to understand what’s happening.

He is finally the Scott she spent her life with, but the shadows and traumas suffered under the Archon’s torture still got a hold on him and she cannot imagine his reactions now, not like she could do years ago.

She doesn’t want him to get angry at Jaal, not now that they are finally getting along. She doesn’t want him to feel betrayed, not after the fear of being abandoned that he shared with her the night before.

But they can’t lie to him, they can’t hide _this_ from him; learning the truth later would feel like betrayal to him and she and Jaal would lose any hope of helping him recover.

So… face tears and disappointment now to avoid a greater crisis later. Sounds like the majority of her plans, to be honest.

He is still cleaning the kitchen with Liam, sharing stories and anecdotes of the good old days in the Milky Way. She hears Drack, too, and she smiles, happy that her little brother is finally opening up and becoming friends with his new crewmates.

“SAM.” she whispers, leaning against the wall. “Can you calculate the probability of Scott panicking again after knowing about Jaal’s proposal?”

A short moment of silence, then: “98,01%, Pathfinder.”

She whines, thumps her head against the wall, and approaches the door, a heavy weight settling on her chest when she hears Scott laugh.

“However,” SAM suddenly says, “I also predict he will quickly accept the new situation after his visit on Aya and his conversation with Jaal.”

She gasps.

“Really?”

“Yes. 80,44% probability, Pathfinder. He is… stronger than he seems. The day spent on Aya deeply helped him.”

She smiles, suddenly relieved.

“You’re right. Thanks, SAM.”

It’s all she needs to feel somewhat more confident and brave. She opens the door and smiles at the sight of her brother listening to one of Drack’s war stories with starry eyes.

He turns to her and he seems surprised to see her there, but his surprise quickly turns into happiness and enthusiasm.

“Sis! Did you know Drack killed a group of mercenaries on Omega using only a hammer?”

“Good times.” the krogan comments from his seat. “My aim and arms still worked fine back then.”

“That’s amazing.” Chloe smiles, feeling anxiety rising in her throat like a bubbly drink. The mood is so amicable and relaxed, she can’t bring herself to ruin her brother’s day.

But she has to. Better tell him now than ruin _months_ of his new life.

“Uh, Scott…?” she starts, following him as he moves around to put away the clean dishes Liam is passing him. “Could we talk for a minute? In my room?”

He already grows worried hearing that and she bites her lips, before realizing that’s probably a bad face to make. So she smiles instead and pats his arm, laughing.

“Hey, it’s nothing serious! Jaal and I just wanted to talk with you for a bit.” She shrugs, happy to see his worry deflate. “You know, we really didn’t have the chance to do it before.”

She is also referring to Scott’s problems with Jaal and he doesn’t need to be told that; he understands perfectly what she means and he nods, smiling back, silently thanking her for not talking about it in front of the others.

It’s an embarrassing topic that makes him feel guilty and even if he is aware of the fact that everyone knows what happened, it’s good not to bring it up again.

“Of course. I’d love to.” He turns to Liam and Drack. “Guys, is it alright if…?”

“Of course, man. You and Jaal cooked for us, go have your family time.” Liam smiles while washing the last two dishes.

“I’m gonna go fetch Gil. That kid gets too sly when it’s about poker or respecting the turns…” Drack grumbles, following the twins out of the galley.

Her quarters are just two steps ahead, so Chloe doesn’t really have the time to prepare a speech or calm down. She bites her lips again, walking more slowly than usual, and prays that SAM is right.

Jaal is even more nervous than she is. He’s pacing around the room and he barely stops when the door opens and he sees Scott following her. His eyes widen comically and he immediately starts to fidget, looking back and forth from one twin to the other.

“Here we are!” she exclaims with more confidence than she really has. “Uh… do you want to drink something, bro?”

There are some bottles and drinks she never tasted on the small table near the couch, but Scott doesn’t seem interested in them either and he shakes his head, smiling nervously.

“You are stalling for time, sis. What’s going on?”

For the first time in her life, she wishes he didn’t know her so well.

Scott looks at Jaal, knowing he will get more answers from him. The angara gulps, but manages to look away before he can betray himself further.

“What happened?” Scott insists, his panic rising. “Is it… something bad?”

“No!” Chloe and Jaal exclaims in unison. They share a look, thinking Scott will probably consider it bad, at least at first.

“It’s good news, actually. But before we talk about that, we want to apologize in advance.”

Scott frowns, studying his sister’s pale face and Jaal’s nearly-shaking hands.

“Why?”

“Because I lied to you.” Jaal speaks up, tears in his eyes and lips trembling. Scott holds his breath, taken aback by that sight and the shame he sees in the alien’s eyes.

“Lied to me…?”

“Forgive me, brother! I wasn’t expecting you to ask _that_ and I panicked, so I didn’t… I lacked the courage to…”

“Wait, wait! What are you talking about?” He looks at Chloe, mouth hanging open, but she looks down at her shoes instead. “Sis! What’s happening?”

“Well, uh…” She makes vague gestures with her hands, then she rubs her neck and makes a little sound of despair.

“I already proposed to her!” Jaal finally blurts out, unable to keep it in any longer. “I’m sorry, brother, I didn’t mean to lie to you, but you were so _happy_ and _relieved_ and…”

“Wait, so…” Scott’s eyes widen too and he stares at his sister, paling. “Does that mean you are getting married _now_?”

“No, not now! In the future! Many years from now, probably!” she immediately tries to reassure him. “I mean, we are still young and there are still many things we have to fix and do in Heleus!”

But it seems Scott didn’t hear her, because he walks towards the small table near the couch and pours himself a glass of… she isn’t sure what and she doubts he knows what he’s drinking either.

It’s certainly an alcoholic drink, though, and when he turns to her and Jaal again, his cheeks are already red.

“We talked about this _just_ yesterday.” he sniffles, before glaring at Jaal, who looks almost smaller, shorter. “No, wait, just _two hours ago_.”

“I didn’t want to hurt you.” Jaal repeats. “You were happy and…”

“It happened while you and the others were on Aya, Scott, not now. We came back to the ship and Jaal couldn’t resist any longer.”

“I waited so long, brother, and I’m sorry, I didn’t think about your reaction, I didn’t think about doing it in front of everyone, about doing it more _romantically_ , because…”  Jaal sighs and moves closer to Chloe, taking her hand. “Because I was impatient and I love your sister more than life itself.”

She blushes at that and Scott blushes too, but his glare slowly softens into a milder, calmer expression, until he sighs and looks down at his half-empty glass.

When he raises his head again, he’s smiling.

“Hey, I get it! This is… this is _awesome_ , guys, and I’m happy for you.” He grins, beaming at them, although he’s pale again and his smile is a bit sad, too. “Really, I am! I understand why you did it, Jaal, and I can’t blame you. I _shouldn’t_ blame you, this doesn’t concern me.”

“It does! You’re part of the family too!” Jaal insists, but Scott shakes his head.

“No, I meant… it doesn’t concern me up to the point of making a fuss about this. I shouldn’t be angry at you because Chloe got engaged without telling me first, it’s _stupid_. I have no right to demand you two to do that.”

He smiles at them again and this time his smile is softer, warmer, almost nostalgic.

“You know, you remind me of Mom and Dad. Sometimes you could see them walk hand in hand like this, when Dad wasn’t feeling like his usual awkward, stubborn self.”

Chloe chokes on a sob and rubs her eyes, so Jaal sends tiny electrical discharges through her skin, which she recognizes as those he uses to comfort or reassure her.

“It’s happening too fast for you, though, isn’t it?” she asks, still worried about her twin’s wellbeing.

He still looks a bit disappointed and hurt, but most of all he looks _scared_ , just like he was yesterday morning, when he first stepped into the Tempest and couldn’t look at Jaal for more than two seconds.

He is staring into his drink, watching who knows what, lost into far memories and thoughts, but her question makes him raise his head again, in panic.

“No! No, I…” He sighs and nods. “Yeah, a little. I mean, I arrived just yesterday and there is still so much I don’t know or understand and now you got engaged and I…” He shrugs. “And I don’t know. I’m still frightened, I guess.”

“Scott. This doesn’t change anything between us.” she says and Jaal nods, adding: “She’s right. We will never leave you behind, I already told you. On the contrary, I have even one more reason to take care of you, now.”

Scott chuckles, a wet sound that turns into a small sob, and Chloe and Jaal are quick to rush to him and envelop him in a tight hug, letting him cry on their shoulders. The drink is in the way and he accidentally spills some of it on the floor, but they don’t even notice it.

They let him vent, continuing to reassure him that they will always be there for him, rubbing a hand on his back or making jokes to make him laugh. He does, in the end, and he looks at them both with a huge smile.

Jaal lets out a relieved sigh when he punches playfully his shoulder and Chloe ruffles his hair with a grin when he punches hers too.

“Enroh said you were supposed to give her a Rofjinn! Can I see it?”

“Of course!” Jaal’s chest swells with pride like never before while Chloe shows the cape to her brother.

It’s probably the best thing he ever sewed and Scott recognizes the effort and care he put into it, even though he’s not an expert.

“That’s her name in Shelesh, right?”

“Yes. It shows she belongs to the Ama Darav family.” Jaal grins. “I’ll make one for you, too, brother!”

“Oh, it’s okay, I…”

“Don’t worry, people won’t think you are getting married to an Ama Darav.” she smiles, before gasping and staring at Jaal. “Right?”

The angara bursts into a loud laughter and kisses her, looking at her with that endearing adoration that used to make Scott feel so uneasy, but which now only makes him smile more.

“No, my Darling One. There are subtle hints sewed in the Rofjinn that every angara can recognize. They will see this was given to you by your _taoshay_ , while Scott’s will be slightly different.”

He turns to the young man, smiling brightly at him, and exclaims: “I’m going to start right now! May I take your measurements?”

“Uh…” Scott shuffles his feet awkwardly on the floor for a moment, before smiling back and nodding. “Sure!”

He stands still while Jaal works around him, measuring the length and size of his shoulders, bust, and neck; Chloe sits on the bed, joking with them, and watching her boyfriend and her brother finally laugh with each other and talk amicably about the wonders of angaran cloths and human sewing techniques.

Ironically, the one who makes the biggest fuss is Liam.

He enters the room after asking for permission and Chloe grants him that, not thinking about the consequences; when the poor man sees _two_ Rofjinn in the room and one currently being made for someone that clearly isn’t him, he gasps and feigns offence.

He actually steps back, a hand on his chest, and looks at Jaal with big, sad, hurt eyes.

“Really, man? _Really?_ ”

“Family first, Liam.” Jaal tells him patiently, too busy drawing the outline of Scott’s Rofjinn to worry about his reaction like he was doing before. Also, he got better at understanding when humans are really offended and when they are just joking and it seems to him that his best friend is doing the latter right now.

That doesn’t mean Liam doesn’t know how to _act_ offended, though. He sniffles and exclaims, still keeping a hand on his chest: “But I asked you first! Way before you and Ryder got together!”

“We had much to do.” Jaal continues, unfazed, while the twins snicker and giggle. “Also, Chloe’s Rofjinn is special. It’s the symbol of our official engagement.”

“Yeah, well…” Liam stops, gawking at the angara. Jaal tenses up too, realizing what he just said, and he turns to Chloe, fearing he said too much too soon. But she smiles at him, because they just told Scott, so it’s time to tell the rest of the crew too.

“ _Engagement?_ ” Liam’s frown disappears, replaced by a huge smile and bright eyes. “Man, that’s _awesome_! It was about time!”

“I know!” Jaal grins at him, giggling like a schoolgirl, and the two men start discussing the future, angaran traditions, the importance of the special Rofjinn; Scott silently moves near his sister and sits on the bed next to her, pale again.

“Scott.” she whispers, fearing he’s feeling sick again, but the smile he gives her is sweet and proud, even if small.

“Are you alright?”

He nods and takes her hand, holding it tightly.

“It won’t happen now, little bro. This is just a… a way to make it official, but the marriage is still pretty far in the future.” She grins and elbows him, making him chuckle. “There are still many things we need to do and I want you to stay with us along all the way.”

“I will.” Scott promises, even if they aren’t even sure Tann will let him stay on the Tempest or give him another task. “It doesn’t feel like time is flowing too fast anymore. So… I’m feeling better.”

He looks at her Rofjinn spread on the bed and gently touches it with a hand.

“Enroh told me you’re supposed to wear it during your next visit on Havarl. Is that right?”

“Yes, to show everyone that I accepted Jaal’s proposal.” She sighs happily, already imagining Sahuna and the other mothers’ happy smiles and the joy of Jaal’s relatives. She thinks they will have two things to celebrate, since Scott will be there too.

“You will be welcomed into the family, too!” she reminds him, watching joy appear in his eyes, together with a faint blush that finally tints his cheeks pink. “There will be a _huge_ party, I can already see it. I’m sure Sahuna already prepared everything.”

“Even though she didn’t know your answer yet?” Scott raises an eyebrow, confused, and she laughs, patting his hand.

“Sahuna knows me better than I know myself. That, and she’s a pretty hopeful woman, too.”

“I see.”

Scott hesitates for a moment, gathers all his courage, then he says softly, looking at Jaal and Liam bouncing up and down like two enthusiastic children:

“I’m happy for you, sis, I really am. Only one day has passed, but it’s like I already spent an eternity here on the Tempest, getting to know Jaal and the others.” He chuckles, shaking his head at the sight of the huge angara bursting into joyous tears. “Especially Jaal.”

“That’s his special magic.” Chloe agrees, sighing fondly when his boyfriend hugs Liam and cries on his shoulder, making him emotional as well.

“So… whatever you need… I’m here. Remember that.” He wraps an arm around her shoulder, like he did after waking up and finding out Dad was dead. “I won’t leave you behind either.”

“I know, little bro.” she laughs softly, the sound coming out a bit choked, blocked by tears. She wraps an arm around his shoulders, too. “I know.”

They watch the curious scene in front of them with huge smiles and Scott allows himself to sink into that beautiful feeling of peace he almost forgot about, a kind of harmony so vast and warm that he feels like he’s floating, forever far from pain and danger.

Everyone is so busy being happy, excited, and on the verge of happy tears that they don’t hear the single _beep_ coming out of Jaal’s angaran omnitool nor do they see the small intermittent light flashing on it.

 

\- - - -

 

_Dear Jaal,_

_your message made me the happiest mother in the galaxy! I cannot wait to meet Scott and give him all our love. Does he like pie, too? Please, make sure to ask him before you get here, so I’ll prepare his favorite one! Does he like angaran fruit?_

_I hope you asked Chloe about_ that _thing. I’m fairly certain everything went good, because I would have received a very sad message from you otherwise… either that or you didn’t ask her yet._

_Please, don’t hesitate any longer; the more you keep it in your heart, the more fear and doubts will enter your mind and I do not want that to happen._

_Hug Chloe and Scott for me!_

_With love,_

_your true mother_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's finally here! I apologize for the delay, but this horribly hot, sticky weather made me feel even worse and I had to take a longer break @_@
> 
> Next chapter will be the last! Scott will finally meet Sahuna and the rest of Jaal's family (angaran babies and kids included!) and things will finally get 100% better for everyone ; v ;

**Author's Note:**

> I read many fics where Ryder is the one who breaks down a lot, but then I thought that the sibling - in this case Scott - goes through a shitton of painful stuff too: first they are in a coma, then they wake up, knowing/hearing about their father's death, and cannot help their twin make things better. _Then_ they are caught by a dangerous alien who tortures them and causes them to go back to the infirmary, their brain scarred (no, really, it's confirmed in the game ;_; ), their psyche undoubtedly hurt as well.
> 
> Ryder has their crew and LI to keep them strong, the sibling has... just Ryder (and the hope that their mother will get better someday). And they didn't even go through the same experiences and journeys, this time, so they had a very different growth.
> 
> So I thought: how would my Ryder's brother react to all this? Surely it must not be easy to go back to the party, knowing you missed most of it, and learn that your sister is slowly, but steadily building her life - even _future_ life - with her lover/new friends/new family. The trauma, stress, and pain would also make him more emotional than usual and give him little patience for the angara's behavior, a species that the sibling canonically still hasn't met and interacted with. 
> 
> And seeing your sister kiss one of these aliens, a loud man who keeps calling you "brother" and laughing in your ear, must be quite unnerving for someone who went through so much shit ;_; So yeah, this is basically a long, angsty/fluffy version of the "how the sibling would react when meeting Ryder's LI" trope. Don't worry, I only write happy endings :'D


End file.
